Is There A Cure For Rheumatoid Arthritis in the Future?

As a practicing Occupational Therapist, I saw up close the havoc that arthritis can cause in daily life. My specialty was helping people with injuries and illnesses that affected their hands.  My special interest was Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).  My hope was and has continued to be that someday they would find a cure for Rheumatoid Arthritis.

RA is an immunosuppressant disease that can affect not only the bones and joints, but the organs as well. I used to describe it to my patients as “something in your immune system flipped a switch and instead of recognizing the tissues and fluids around the joints as good, your immune system has gone rogue. Your immune system attacks the good stuff that keeps your joints healthy and mobile.” RA is mean and persistent. It dramatically alters the lives of too many people, especially women. I loved my patients. I hated their disease.

Traditionally, doctors have prescribed drugs that can slow down RA. Disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) treat arthritis symptoms and inhibit joint damage. Newer classes of drugs, known as Biologics, are also proving to be highly effective in neutralizing the immune system’s errant signals that lead to joint damage. They are not without side effects but when they work- they appear to do wonders. For newly diagnosed patients, or for those who have not yet experienced the deformities that can come with RA, these drugs can stave off disfigurements and joint damage that so dramatically affect function. While they don’t work for everyone, for those who are affected, it is nearly miraculous.

Now comes great news from researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology about a drug that when tested in mice, appears to fully cure Rheumatoid Arthritis! Not just keep it at bay, but actually affect a total cure! Combining this new drug with dexamethasone, (a cortisone-like anti-inflammatory drug), the new drug reversed all signs of inflammation and provided a long term cure. The new drug is highly targeted to work on a type of protein found only in inflamed tissue without affecting other healthy tissue- nearly eliminating unwanted side effects.

Not yet tested in humans, researchers are planning to conduct clinical trials on people with RA next year. While it may not be time to celebrate just yet, I will be prepared for a major celebration to cheer all of those RA patients whom I will never see and those who will never need our splints.

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