HKU Bulletin November 2006 (Vol. 8 No. 1)

4 COVER STORY Seeking a Cure for the Incurable Renowned researcher has high hopes for spinal cord injury victims. O ne of the world’s leading researchers into spinal cord injuries has based himself at the University to carry out groundbreaking clinical trials that hold promise of finding a cure. Wise Young, Dist inguished Visi t ing Professor in the Department of Anatomy (pictured far left), is overseeing final preparations for the trials which will test a combination of lithium and stem cells from umbilical cord blood. Research on animals suggests combined treatments offer the best hope of a cure. Preliminary trials now underway at Queen Mary Hospital are testing the effects of lithium alone on spinal cord injuries and the combined treatment will be tested on 400 patients in Hong Kong, Mainland China and Taiwan next July. “To me a cure is when someone can’t tell you have a spinal cord injury if they don’t know you. It doesn’t mean returning to pre-injury status, it means getting rid of the affliction,” Professor Young said. The trials are being carried out under the auspices of the China Spinal Injury Network (CSIN), which Professor Young helped to found two years ago to carry out cost-effective, international- standard clinical trials using The University of Hong Kong as a base. Funds are still being raised for the full-blown trial which will cost US$12 million, against $50 million and upwards for trials elsewhere. But the CSIN has already trained doctors on the Mainland, established 20 centres in the region, set up a web- based network and other infrastructure, and secured support from the Central Government. Our Department of Anatomy and Clinical Trials Centre are helping to organise and oversee the work of the CSIN, and ensure trials meet international best practices. “The University of Hong Kong has embraced this concept whole-heartedly and made a very unusual commitment, not just raising money but donating substantial amounts of faculty time and effort to it. What is going to happen is that Hong Kong will become the leading spinal cord injury clinical trials centre and the leading discoverer of therapies as a result of this commitment,” Professor Young predicted. One prerequisite for a successful trial is that doctors and patients establish a close relationship to support long-term follow- up. Data is already being collected on patients at regular intervals to assess each centre’s ability to maintain this relationship. This approach also opens the door for patients’ participation in future trials should the combined lithium and stem cell treatment not take hold. “I want patients to know that these clinical trials aren’t like going into a casino and throwing the dice, it’s not a gamble. We will try the best available therapies on them until we get the best combination,” he said. Professor Young, who was born in Hong Kong, grew up in Japan and is Richard H. Shindell Chair in Neuroscience at Rutgers University, is well placed to find that magic bullet. He began searching for a cure for spinal cord injuries in 1979 after treating a young wrestler who had broken his neck. His investigations resulted in the current standard treatment for spinal cord injuries, high-dose methylprednisolone, which saves up to 20 per cent of function if administered soon after an injury occurs. Apart from his scientific achievements, Professor Young has also befriended many victims, including the late actor Christopher Reeve, and set up a website for victims and their carers, CareCure Community . His compassion and tireless research efforts saw him named one of Esquire magazine’s ‘best and brightest’ last December. “The reason I do this is that I have many, many friends with spinal cord injuries. This is a population of people who deserve better. For so many centuries they were told nothing could be done. The problem is not a scientific one, it’s a political and funding one. I’m convinced we could have had a cure for spinal cord injuries 10 years ago,” he said. 5