Friday 22 January 2010

ME/CFS, XMRV, LYME DISESE

I posted last year about ME/CFS, XMRV .
I will be interested to see how many ME/CFS patients have a cocktail of XMRV retrovirus and Lyme Disease.

The following was copied from The Lyme and Tick- Borne Diseases Research Centre at Columbia University.

http://vesta.cumc.columbia.edu/lymedisease/news/user/featNews.php?sel=newsFeat

'A fascinating and potentially very important study has recently come out in the journal Science. The study reports on the discovery that 68% of patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) carry the XMRV virus as compared to 3.7% of those without CFS. Further work reported in the New York Times indicates that the virus has been found in 98% of patients with CFS. The discovery of this retrovirus, if confirmed by other research groups, suggests that this virus is either the cause or an important secondary factor in CFS. This finding has implications for Lyme research as it is possible that patients who carry this virus when co-infected with Lyme go on to have persistent symptoms because: a) of activation of the latent virus; b) infection with Lyme or another tick-borne disease lowers the immune surveillance making the individual more susceptible to "catch" the virus; or c) the presence of the virus and the spirochete together act synergistically to induce an array of illness symptoms or to prevent eradication or control of either organism. In any case, given that the symptoms of CFS are so similar to the symptoms of patients with chronic persistent Lyme symptoms, especially shared problems with fatigue and cognition, research in this area may shed important light on the mechanisms underlying the perpetuation of chronic symptoms. In terms of treatment, if this virus is thought to be causal, then retroviral treatments that are used for treating HIV may be very helpful for patients with chronic persistent symptoms.'

Many of you will have seen Laurel's presentation to the CFSAC meeting.




On her blog Dreams at Stake, Laurel says she is co infected with Lyme Disease.
In a later post of Laurel's , she says she has now tested positive for XMRV .

I wish Laurel well and hope now that her doctors know what she is facing they are more able to help her recover.

It will be very interesting to see if other Lyme Disease patients are similarly co infected clearly not all but perhaps some that have not responded well to Lyme Disease treatments. It will also be interesting to see how many ME/CFS patients who do not have XMRV do infact have Lyme Disease and like me respond well to simple antibiotics.

4 comments:

  1. Laurel's presentation is clear and coherent. She describes so precisely what these illnesses do to people and just how incredibly sick they become. As she says though you become invisible.

    What is so shocking is that there are so many people out there who tell an identical story, so often they were really fit and active people before they were struck down. Yet somehow they are made to feel time and again that it is their fault and they are the only ones to find themselves in this mess. This is so not true.

    We have to hope that having identified some of the things which have made Laurel so ill that she will improve. Her positive attitude to what has happened to her is quite amazing.

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  2. Thanks, Joanne, for posting my video and helping my voice be heard.

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  3. Thank you Laurel for your comment and thank you for doing the video which was so excellent for the CFSAC to see as well as everyone else in the ME/CFS World.

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  4. Thank you so much Laurel for all the excellent information you have posted on ME/CFS world. It has enlightned me as well as many others who have seen your video and read all the articles on this disableing illness. Do keep up the good works and keep us all informed on any and all new developements that come along. It only takes one good persistante voice to bring information as this to light and you are the one. Lucille

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