Newsroom · Multiple sclerosis (MS) · October 5, 2026

MS Stem-Cell Transplant: Blood Markers Stay Low for Years

In short: A peer-reviewed study published online on September 28, 2026 followed 24 people with severe multiple sclerosis after an autologous stem-cell transplant (aHSCT) in the HALT-MS trial. Markers of inflammation and nerve damage in blood and spinal fluid stayed lower for years. The study is small, and MS still has no cure.

What the study looked at

Researchers analyzed samples from 24 people with severe multiple sclerosis who took part in HALT-MS, a Phase II clinical trial of autologous hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (aHSCT). In this treatment, chemotherapy removes much of the immune system, which then regrows from the person's own stem cells.

The team measured about 50 soluble biomarkers, including inflammatory proteins called cytokines and chemokines, neurofilament light chain (a marker of nerve-fiber damage) and glial fibrillary acidic protein. Blood samples were taken at 9 timepoints over 60 months. Spinal fluid was collected at 3 timepoints: before treatment, at month 24 and at month 48.

What they found

Inflammatory markers dropped and stayed lower for several years after the transplant, in both blood and spinal fluid.
The authors describe the pattern as long-lasting reductions in inflammatory proteins and markers of damage to nerve fibers and their support cells, consistent with persistent disease quiescence.
Levels of one protein, IL-7, rose in spinal fluid after treatment.
Changes in blood and in spinal fluid were mostly different from each other. They correlated poorly, except for neurofilament light chain.

Who reported it and how reliable it is

This is a peer-reviewed paper in Neurology Neuroimmunology and Neuroinflammation, not a company announcement. We read the PubMed record and abstract, not the full text.

Limits of the findings

Only 24 people were studied, and all had severe MS. The authors note that repeated lumbar punctures are invasive, which limited how often spinal fluid could be collected.

Biomarkers are signals in the body, not a direct measure of how a person feels or functions. Low markers fit with a quiet disease, but this study does not show that the transplant cures MS.

How this fits with other aHSCT evidence

Autologous stem-cell transplant is an aggressive treatment that carries real risks, and in the United States it is still mostly given through clinical trials. This analysis offers a biological explanation for why disease activity may stay quiet after the procedure, but it does not change the risk picture.

Cure Checker's multiple sclerosis report covers how aHSCT compares with other treatments.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a cure for multiple sclerosis?

No. MS has no cure today. Stem-cell transplant can stop new disease activity for years in many people treated, but it is a high-risk treatment reserved for aggressive MS, and this study does not show a cure.

Does a stem-cell transplant stop MS for good?

This study cannot say. It followed blood markers for 5 years in 24 people and found inflammation markers stayed lower. That fits with lasting quiet disease, but it is a small group and a limited follow-up.

What is neurofilament light chain in MS?

It is a protein released when nerve fibers are damaged. Doctors and researchers measure it in blood or spinal fluid as a sign of nerve damage. In this study it was one of the markers that stayed lower after the transplant.

Read the full Multiple sclerosis (MS) report: latest studies, treatments, trials near you, expert care centers and support groups, updated daily.

Sources

Autologous Hematopoietic Transplantation Reduces Brain Inflammatory and Axoglial Damage Biomarkers in Multiple Sclerosis. Neurology Neuroimmunology and Neuroinflammation, via PubMed, published online September 28, 2026