High cost of treatment lead to major roadblock

CHENNAI: As the world gets ready to observe Multiple Scelorosis Day on Wednesday, the major concern remains lack of awareness about the neurological disorder, apart from the high cost of treatment.Speaking to City Express, Ann Gonsalvez, Vice President, All India Multiple Scelorosis Society, said that the high cost of the treatment has led to the disease being called the rich man’s disease, as the cost of treatment is well beyond the reach of the common man.“Each injection costs `6,000 per week and the patient has to take the injection every week for at least two years. While the rich can still afford it, what about the underprivileged,” she asked.Most of the people who suffer with the problem fail to come early, she said and added that the cause for this problem was unkown and there was no known cure as well. “Treatment for this problem can only retard the complications, but not cure it,” she said. Apart from treatment, yoga, aromatherapy, acupuncture, meditation and reiki would also help, she added.The theme of this year’s World MS Day is ‘Work and MS’, and it seeks to highlight the obstacles and challenges faced by victims of MS at workplace. In doing so, the initiative hopes to develop a platform of organisations working for this cause so that they can work towards improving the work environment. When the co-employees are aware of the disease, they will understand the needs of their co-workers who suffer from MS better and thereby, help improve the productivity.This problem is unique, as symptoms and treatment modules differ from person to person, Gonsalvez said.Health experts further say that MS never kills, but it is the complications associated with it like urinary tract and chest infections, reported commonly in MS patients, which cause death of the patient.While in India, there are atleast 10,000 people who have reported with MS, in Tamil Nadu, there are at least 150 persons.Multiple Scelorosis is a neurological disorder that affects the central nervous system of young adults, where the protective insulation surrounding the nerves, called Myelin, is damaged and nerve impulses carrying the messages from the brain and spinal cord to the rest of the body are impaired seriously.When the damage to the nerves increases, functions like vision, writing, speech, memory and walking, are affected. MS, as a disease, is difficult to diagnose due to the many symptoms that it throws up. It can even go undiagnosed for years together following start of symptoms. Diagnosis is made after detailed physical and neurological examinations by neurologists.