16 years after my MS diagnosis, I'm having my first ever lumbar puncture this week.
How have I managed to avoid one so long?
Well, my diagnosis was arrived at after looking at years of medical history - misfiring neurons wrongly labelled as trapped nerves, mostly - and eventually an MRI.
My lumbar puncture is to see the extent to which the JC virus has invaded my spine. Knowing if this is the case will enable me to make a choice about my next MS DMT.
At present this choice comes down to three options - Mavenclad (cladribine), Fingolimod (Gilenya) or Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). So two oral meds and one infusion.
Actually, if this test shows the JC virus, I'll be down to a choice of one.
The main thing that's worrying me about all of this is that eventually I'm going to run out of possible treatments, right? Tysabri is at the top of the tree with regards to efficacy, Ocrevus is on a level with it. So where do I go from here?
To use a computer gaming metaphor, what happens when I compete the final MS treatment level? Is there a BOSS level which defeats all comers? Or will it just be a disappointing credit sequence?
Most importantly, will this treatment ruin my favourite film of all time?
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