#040: Autologous stem cell therapy (aHSCT) in MS. Facts and experiences with Dr. Roland Martin

MS-Perspektive - The Multiple Sclerosis Podcast

Dr. Roland Martin is one of the leading experts in autologous stem cell therapy (aHSCT) for MS. He shares facts and his experience.

You can find the written version of the interview on my blog: https://ms-perspektive.com/40-ahsct-roland-martin

This time I talk to Prof. Dr. Roland Martin about the findings to date on autologous stem cell therapy (aHSCT) in MS patients and his experiences. As former head of the Section for Neuroimmunology and MS Research at the University Hospital Zurich, he played a key role in establishing this induction therapy in Switzerland and making it a health insurance benefit. But retirement is not on the cards. He is still affiliated with the University of Zurich and pursue research in the Institute of Experimental Immunology as an emeritus. Roland is also Chief Scientific Officer at Cellerys AG in Schlieren, Switzerland, and continues to be associated with the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.

Table of Contents

• Introduction – Who is Dr. Roland Martin?
• Understanding Autologous Stem Cell Therapy (aHSCT)
• Patient Experience and Outcomes
• System Support and Future Trends
• Farewell

Introduction – Who is Dr. Roland Martin?

I am a neurologist and immunologist by training and have worked for 40 years both in research and clinical care for multiple sclerosis patients (MS) and also patients with other neuroinflammatory diseases. My wife, Dr. Mireia Sospedra, is also an immunologist, who works on disease mechanisms of MS and recently more and more on nutrition.

The development of new treatments for MS has been an important part of our work, and these reach from small molecules, natural compounds, biologicals such as monoclonal antibodies and cell therapies that aim at immune tolerance or – the topic of the interview – complete exchange and renewal of the immune system.

Mireia and I have a 16 year-old son, and from my first marriage, I have four more children, 2 girls and 2 boys, who are all married and work, three in the US, and one in Berlin.

Currently, I have 6 grandchildren. Besides our research, which has always been a hobby and vocation, I am an enthusiast photographer, love to walk and hike with Mireia.

How and where can interested people follow your research activities?

As I may have said at the beginning, I have retired from my clinical position last year since the retirement age is interpreted very strictly in Switzerland, which is a pity for somebody who loves his work and works with the brain rather than with a hoe in a coal mine. I continue research in the field of MS at the University of Zurich and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and spend most of my time at a startup company that we founded to develop yet another very interesting cell therapy for MS, that is antigen-specific tolerance induction.

We have written many articles on aHSCT in MS, but also about other therapies, disease mechanisms, infectious triggers, and more. All this is easily accessible on the internet, but most of it is (unfortunately) rather scientific and sometimes to hard to understand for a lay person.

Roland Martin on PubMed

Cellerys

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Many thanks to Roland Martin for this clear picture of the aHSCT as a whole. I learned a lot during the interview. I hope the same applies to you.

See you soon and try to make the best out of your life, Nele

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