2024-01-19 00:30:00
A Quebecer sentenced to death from aggressive leukemia is getting a second chance thanks to an umbilical cord blood transplant, made possible by a medical breakthrough by Montreal researchers.
“I am grateful,” breathes Charles Parent. I had already suffered so many losses, such as no longer traveling, getting married or starting a family…”
But the 32-year-old from Laval recently got married and flew to Italy, realizing his dreams one by one, as he headed into palliative care just 3 years ago.
Transplant, but recurrence
In August 2020, he discovered he had acute myeloid leukemia. His blood work was so worrying that he had to go to the hospital as soon as doctors saw his results.
He quickly received intense chemotherapy treatments in hospital. Then, a stem cell transplant to stop his blood cancer.
However, barely 68 days after his transplant, the worst happened. He was already a repeat offender.
“It was the most difficult moment, because the hopes were practically zero,” he admits. He had been warned that in the event of a relapse, palliative care would await him.
But having nothing to lose, he was ready to try anything when his doctors at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital suggested he take part in a clinical trial.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY CHARLES PARENT
He first took a combination of two tablet medications, approved individually by Health Canada, but not in combination. So his insurance company only reimbursed one of the two.
His wife launched a campaign on the GoFundMe platform, raising more than $70,000 to pay the costs of the second, which cost around $8,000 per month.
Unfavorable predictions
After a year and a half without recurrence, he could receive a second transplant. This time he received stem cells from umbilical cord blood, the cells of which had been multiplied by a molecule (UM171) discovered by researchers at the University of Montreal.
His partner, Virginie Smith, confides that she was both full of hope and consumed with worry. “He was only accepted into the study because all the prognoses were against him,” she remembers.
The latter also made more than 75 donations of blood, plasma and platelets to Héma-Québec in solidarity with her partner during his fight.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY CHARLES PARENT
More than a year after this second transplant, life is finally returning to normal for the young couple. It will take a few more years to declare a complete cure, but Charles Parent is delighted that cancer is still staying away.
Towards a new treatment born thanks to Montreal researchers
The umbilical cord blood transplant whose cells have been amplified by the molecule discovered in Montreal could become a revolutionary treatment against acute leukemia.
“It’s very rewarding,” says Dr. Sandra Cohen, clinical researcher and hematologist at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, who led the clinical trials in which Charles Parent participated.
Dr. Sandra Cohen, clinical researcher and hematologist at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital. PHOTO PROVIDED BY CIUSSS EST-DE-
Stem cell transplants aim to regenerate the marrow so that it then produces healthy blood cells. The donor must be compatible.
Dr. Cohen points out that the advantage of umbilical cord blood is that the accounting does not have to be perfect. So it could be used if a donor cannot be found. However, this newborn blood has very few cells, often insufficient in number for an adult.
10 to 80 times
However, the UM171 molecule makes it possible to multiply the number of stem cells by 10 to 80 times. It is the culmination of a dozen years of research work carried out by Dr Guy Sauvageau and numerous colleagues.
And cord blood transplants with amplified cells could also lead to better cures for leukemia, Dr. Cohen hopes.
Clinical trials carried out on around thirty patients suffering from acute leukemia demonstrate that 70 of the participants survived two years after their stem cell transplant amplified with the UM171 molecule, without any sign of recurrence of the disease.
Despite the encouraging results, Dr. Cohen points out that this is a small sample and that other studies, on a larger scale, will be needed to demonstrate this beyond doubt.
“Thanks to the molecule found in Montreal, that’s phenomenal,” rejoices Catherine Latour, hematologist at Héma-Québec. She also salutes the mothers who have donated cord blood for the benefit of research.
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