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I seem to remember that last Monday, someone was able to check on a website that lists a brief description of what was expected in the following day's PNAS publication. Has anyone checked this today? Did I miss that?
“We have immune system profiles and we can tell by the immune system how the XMRV is doing the damage,”
This statement is highly significant
I look forward to seeing the supporting evidence (not to say that I have any doubt about what she is saying)
Whether Dr. Mikovits should be 'breaking the story' to the media several weeks before the paper is published - if is indeed going to be published in Sept. I don't know.
“We have immune system profiles and we can tell by the immune system how the XMRV is doing the damage,”
This statement is highly significant
I look forward to seeing the supporting evidence (not to say that I have any doubt about what she is saying)
I completely agree, WPI's PR skills are a disaster. Dr. Mikovits should not be saying anything about unpublished data, period. This is how you get a bad name in the scientific community and it will certainly not help get funding for future studies form the government or other research organizations.
Dr. Mikovits broke whatever embargo was present on the Alter paper, stating in an interview with RGJ.Com, what has seemed to be more and more obvious - that the Alter paper is going to confirm the WPI's findings when it is released. While no one yet had directly said so, the news seemed to be in the air. In an interview in Nevada Newsmaker Annette Whittemore very confidently said several new replication studies will shortly out confirm the WPI's findings and the mood overall seemed very good.
It's a big day, a huge day for CFS and, of course the WPI. How fitting that the WPI which has endured six months of skepticism as study after study has failed to find XMRV not only in ME/CFS but in other diseases, was greeted with this news as they cut the ribbons on the new facility. Representatives of drug companies and diagnostic laboratories are reportedly among those attending the WPI's Symposium this week.
There was already good news on the treatment front with Andrea Whittemore, who became severely ill after having to go off Ampligen, as she reported that she had improved significantly on new treatments linked to XMRV. With the confirmation of XMRV in CFS the drug companies appear to be picking up track right where they left off six months ago when the negative studies appeared. Dr. Lombardi stated that treatment trials could begin at the WPI soon. Annette reported that the the WPI is putting together a team of physicians to lead the medical end of the WPI as fast they can and hope to open in late Fall.
Dr. Mikovits also scooped herself on a paper she expected to published at the end of this year that she reported will demonstrate distinct immune abnormalities are present in ME/CFS patients infected with XMRV. This is a major accomplishment because it suggests that XMRV is more than a 'passenger virus' but may have profound effects on the immune system. With researchers able to show XMRV is causing distinct immune abnormalities the next step is to show that drugs that remove the virus and recorrect the immune system abnormalities lead to improved health. Three drugs have been able to stop XMRV in the lab and Dr. Lombardi felt many more were potential candidates stating there was alot of 'low-hanging fruit' available on drug company shelves.
Oy, from what I just read that was posted above, it looks like September. <heavy sigh> Just like always, time will tell. You would think that after all the patience I've had to muster for so many years that it would be second nature by now, but it's not. Well, we do what we must, just as we have always done. It will be worth the wait if it's as positive as stated above, well worth the wait.