The Alberta government has announced it is launching a study to track multiple sclerosis patients who go overseas to seek the controversial Zamboni liberation treatment.
The government is also committing to fund clinical trials if and when it is safe and ethical to proceed.
The province says will provide up to $1 million for the observational study patients, to be conducted by researchers from the University of Calgary, the University of Alberta, and other experts.
The goal of the three-year study is to determine the safety of the treatment and to assess the patient-reported impact. That study will begin in spring 2011.
Albertans who have received the treatment in another country, those who are scheduled to receive it and other Albertans with MS will be eligible to participate.
That information will then be used to determine whether to move forward with future clinical trials. It will also help inform health authorities on what kind of follow-up care Albertans who have received treatment overseas need. (The "liberation" treatment is not available in Canada.)
In conjunction with the study, an MS research website and database will be developed where Albertans can volunteer and consent to participate in the study, as well as report on treatment they have received.
"This study is a response to the remarkable interest amongst MS patients in the new MS treatment proposed by Dr. Zamboni," Dr. Tom Feasby, Dean of the University of Calgary's Faculty of Medicine, said in a news release.
"It will help us understand the experiences of MS patients having this intervention, including any complications."
Alberta Health and Wellness Minister Gene Zwozdesky said he is pleased the province can conduct the observational study.
"Our government is committed to help build the body of evidence that will provide a clear indication, one way or the other, about the safety and effectiveness of this new treatment. This study is an important step in that process," he said.
