An incurable heart condition that causes cardiac failure can be reversed using antibodies discovered in survivors, scientists have discovered.
A new breakthrough study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that three men who suffered from cardiac amyloidosis had a “natural” recovery from the condition.
Cardiac amyloidosis is a heart condition where faulty misshapen proteins build up and get stuck in and around different parts of the heart, according to Cleveland Clinic. The buildup of protein makes it harder for the heart to pump blood, causing it to pump harder. The extra effort weakens and damages the heart, ultimately causing it to fail.
When one 68-year-old case study with heart failure caused by cardiac amyloidosis told doctors that his conditioned improved, the experts were amazed by his survival.
“We have seen for the first time that the heart can get better with this disease,” professor Marianna Fontana, lead study author and cardiologist at University College London, said in a statement. “That has not been known until now and it raises the bar for what might be possible with new treatments.”
For their new breakthrough study, researchers at University College London and the Royal Free Hospital culled through more than 1,600 patient records and were able to identify just two more patients, aged 76 and 82, who reported an improvement in their condition.
They investigated the three men using scans and blood tests to show that the toxic amyloid protein deposits were gone and the heart returned to a close-to-normal healthy state.
Blood tests, further scans and, for one patient, an exercise capacity assessment were conducted to confirm recovery. One man also underwent a heart muscle biopsy, which suggested that his immune system was activated due to an unusual inflammatory response around the protein buildup.
The men also produced natural antibodies to ward off the proteins — which were deemed “highly likely” to be the cause of recovery. These antibodies were not found in other survivors with the same condition — whose symptoms got worse, as expected.
“Whether these antibodies caused the patients’ recovery is not conclusively proven,” Professor Julian Gillmore, head of the UCL Centre for Amyloidosis, said. “However, our data indicates that this is highly likely and there is potential for such antibodies to be recreated in a lab and used as a therapy. We are currently investigating this further, although this research remains at a preliminary stage.”
Heart failure occurs when the heart isn’t pumping as well as it should and can’t meet the body’s needs for blood and oxygen. The lifelong condition typically has no cure, but can be managed with medication and a healthy lifestyle, according to the American Heart Association.
The Heart Failure Society of America estimates that nearly 6.5 million Americans over the age of 20 have heart failure, and that it accounts for about 8.5% of all heart disease deaths in the US.
Scientists now hope that the natural antibodies can eventually be re-created in a lab and used for treatment for heart failure patients in the future.
“This work not only represents a major breakthrough in our understanding of cardiac amyloidosis, but crucially opens up new possibilities for more effective treatment options,” Jon Spiers, chief executive of the Royal Free Charity, which funded the study, said.
