Attack of the Immune System (Multiple Sclerosis)

When I think of the immune system, I tend to think of little cells wearing body armor while holding some sort of weapon and fighting crime, kind of like in the picture below. 

For the most part, we can attribute our health to the immune system for protecting us from viruses, bacteria, and infectious diseases (like the flu and malaria), so if you're looking for something to be thankful for this coming Thanksgiving, well there you go. Unfortunately, not every immune system is the same. Autoimmunity, which is defined as a condition in which the body produces an immune response against its own constituents, affects a wide array of individuals all over the world. The list of disorders is somewhat lengthy, but there is one in particular that recently caught my attention, and it goes by multiple sclerosis (MS). If you're not familiar with this disorder, it essentially, is an attack of the immune system on myelin sheaths which functions to allow action potentials to quickly propagate from one neuron to another, and is an extremely important part of the central nervous system (both brain and spinal cord). This disease, if you haven't already figured out, interferes with muscle coordination, vision, and even breathing. The video bellow probably paints a  much better picture of MS though.

As the video mentioned, it appears there are no apparent cause and cure for multiple sclerosis. There are a few treatments that help with pain/discomfort, but it does not work for everyone. This whole topic really got me thinking, and maybe freaking out, but what would happen and how would I be able to live with this extremely harsh condition? How would you? Aside from right now, I hardly ever pay any attention to my movements, I'm pretty sure none of us do, but imagine not being able to go out to the store to pick up a few groceries or watch one of your favorite movies because of blurred vision. Pretty scary right?

I decided to look for recently published articles and videos to see if there was any progress in the search for better treatments. Surprisingly, this VIDEO which aired just two weeks ago gave a lot more insight than I expected. Megan Quinn, a female who developed MS at 27, will be the first to undergo a new and exciting treatment. According to Dr. Jon LaPook, stems cells taken from Megan will be morphed into stems cells that are found in the CNS, and then placed back into her body. The ultimate goal of this treatment is to re-form any missing or damaged myelin sheaths. This seems to be an outstanding new form of treatment, and a step in a good direction (I really hope everything turns out good for Megan), but I guess only time will tell if this innovative option is safe enough to undergo a widespread use.