HSCT for MS Review: Janet from Canada on HSCT in India
by admin
Patient account published with the patient's consent. Clinical details checked and approved by the board of haematologists at HSCT Hospital India, whose transplant physicians hold DM Clinical Haematology qualifications and fellowship training in stem cell transplantation. The programme runs at a JCI-USA, NABH and NABL accredited hospital that has treated more than 1500 patients. Page last updated: 3 October 2026.
Janet, a teacher and machinist from Canada, was diagnosed with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis in her early forties. Within four years she could no longer work, her hands and her left side were numb, and she needed help at home with simple tasks. She came to HSCT Hospital India in New Delhi for HSCT, with her daughter as her attendant. Five months after treatment, she wrote to her HSCT Case Manager that her new MRI showed no new lesions.
In MS, white blood cells damage myelin, the fatty sheath that insulates nerve fibres in the brain and spinal cord. Where myelin is damaged, signals to the hands, legs and eyes slow down or fail, which is what Janet describes in her video. HSCT, short for haematopoietic stem cell transplantation, clears those white blood cells with chemotherapy. The patient’s own stem cells, collected and frozen beforehand, are then given back, and they produce new blood and immune cells.
Janet from Canada: HSCT for MS at a Glance
Patient
Janet is from Canada, and she worked as a substitute teacher and a machinist.
Condition
She was diagnosed with relapsing remitting MS in her early forties.
Before HSCT
Her hands and her left arm and leg were always numb, she lost her balance and she could no longer work.
MS medicines before HSCT
Her family says a first medicine costing 25,000 dollars a year did not stop her MS, and a second cost 55,000 dollars a year.
Attendant
Her daughter came with her to India and stayed with her through the treatment.
After HSCT
Five months after treatment, she wrote that her MRI showed no new lesions.
Price of the programme today
HSCT Hospital India charges 30,000 US dollars, all inclusive, for up to 30 days in hospital.
How MS changed Janet’s life before HSCT
Janet’s first sign came on a drive to work in the dark, when the road did not look right to her. She taught that day, went home for a nap, and woke up barely able to reach the kitchen table. An MRI followed, and three months later her doctor gave her the diagnosis.
"My hands are always numb now. My left side, my left arm, and my left leg are always numb. I lose my balance now. I avoid stairs because I’m afraid of falling."
Janet, MS patient from Canada
Janet says her MS kept getting worse little by little. She had trouble cooking because her fingers did not work properly, and she began to forget things. She once called her eldest daughter at university to wish her a happy birthday on the wrong day.
Work went too. Janet had held two jobs, as a machinist and as a substitute teacher, and she says she can no longer do either. She often taught the most difficult students and had the patience for them. Teaching again was the reason she gave for wanting treatment.
"I would like to get better so that way I can teach again."
Janet, MS patient from Canada
A patient in Canada can ask for the HSCT Hospital India brochure by email. It explains each stage of treatment, the 30 day stay and what the single price includes.
Janet’s family says her first MS medicine cost 25,000 dollars a year and did not stop her MS from getting worse. Her second medicine cost 55,000 dollars a year. She was not able to join a clinical trial of HSCT in Canada, and the treatment was not offered to her at home.
Her family found a programme abroad quoted at about 80,400 US dollars, which they could not afford after years without her income. They then found HSCT Hospital India, where one all-inclusive price covers the treatment and the 30 day stay. Prices in other countries are compared on the page about HSCT cost by country.
Janet’s daughter Chantel, then a 20 year old student at York University, speaks in the video too. She says her mother found it hard to ask for help, so she asked on her behalf.
"What it would mean for me if my mom were to get this treatment is I would get my mom back. She would be herself again and I could tell her things and she would remember them."
Chantel, Janet’s daughter
Send your diagnosis, your latest MRI report and the MS medicines you have tried through the enquiry form. The HSCT specialist doctors at HSCT Hospital India review every case without charge, and an HSCT Case Manager replies to you by email.
What HSCT at HSCT Hospital India involved for Janet
Janet came to New Delhi with her daughter, who shared her private room through the stay. HSCT at HSCT Hospital India is one in-patient stay of up to 30 days. It starts with a full medical evaluation and follows four stages in a fixed order: mobilisation, collection of the stem cells, conditioning and reinfusion.
In mobilisation, a growth factor and a short course of chemotherapy move stem cells from the bone marrow into the blood. A machine then collects them over several hours, and they are frozen. Conditioning uses cyclophosphamide and anti-thymocyte globulin, or ATG, to clear the immune cells behind the MS. The frozen stem cells are then thawed and given back through a drip.
In the days after reinfusion, the blood counts are at their lowest, a stretch doctors call the aplastic phase. Every patient at HSCT Hospital India stays in hospital through these days, in a deluxe private room with Triple HEPA air filtration. Nurses are present day and night, so a fever is treated as soon as it starts. Each stage is explained in the MS treatment guide.
Janet’s MRI five months after HSCT, in her own words
Five months after treatment, Janet wrote to her HSCT Case Manager in India about her latest MRI scan. An MRI shows lesions, the areas of damage to myelin, and a new lesion is a sign that MS is still active. Janet wrote that her scan showed none.
"I had a MRI a week ago, September 18 2017. I showed no new lesions, and repair had begun on the left side of the brain. I was not expecting such good news."
Janet, MS patient from Canada
Janet’s HSCT in her own words: before and after
Before: body
Her hands and her left side were always numb, and she avoided stairs for fear of falling.
Before: daily life
She could not work and depended on her family for simple tasks such as cooking.
Before: medicines
Her family says two MS medicines, at 25,000 and 55,000 dollars a year, did not stop her MS.
After: MRI at five months
She wrote that her scan showed no new lesions.
After: her own words
She wrote that she was not expecting such good news.
After the 30 day stay, recovery continues at home, and most patients return to their usual activities within 2 to 4 months. What to expect month by month is explained in how long it takes to recover after HSCT for MS. What happens if MS becomes active again is covered in can MS come back after HSCT.
Travelling from Canada to New Delhi raises questions about flights, the Indian medical visa and bringing a family member. An HSCT Case Manager can phone you to go through them, free of charge.
For a Canadian patient, the first step is the enquiry form with recent MRI reports and a list of past MS medicines. The HSCT specialist doctors at HSCT Hospital India read these and send a free opinion on whether HSCT is likely to help. If it is, an HSCT Case Manager plans the visa and travel. Treatment starts only after a full medical evaluation in New Delhi.
HSCT Hospital India has treated more than 1,500 people with MS, from over 30 countries, since 2016, using the non-myeloablative protocol developed by Dr Richard Burt. The hospital holds JCI-USA accreditation from the Joint Commission International, as well as NABH and NABL, India’s national boards for hospitals and laboratories. The price of 30,000 US dollars is all inclusive for up to 30 days. It covers treatment, the private room and the attendant’s stay, with food and laundry for both, and airport pick-up and drop-back. There is no long waiting list.
Janet: I sometimes have a problem cooking now, because my fingers don’t work right, trying to even just mix stuff up in the frying pan. I have to depend on Vince to help me with simple things like that.
Janet: I would like to get better so that way I can teach again. A lot of times I got the difficult students, but I had the patience for them and really did well with those students. So I’d love to go back to doing that. Currently I’m not working because of my MS. I used to work both as [a] machinist and teaching. I would do both jobs. But now I can’t do either one.
Janet: I noticed when I drove to work in the morning time it was dark. The road just didn’t seem right. But I worked through it. And then that Monday I substituted. I went home and I said to my youngest daughter, “Oh, I just need a nap.” I laid down for the nap and I got up and I could barely get to the kitchen table. We’ll do an MRI and take it from there. So I waited [and] three months later I go back and see him.
Janet: There are a lot of things that I used to do but I can’t do now. It just keeps little by little getting worse and worse. I never thought I’d be this bad, but I am. My hands are always numb now. My left side, my left arm, and my left leg are always numb. I lose my balance now. I avoid stairs because I’m afraid of falling. I never did that before. I forget things now. My oldest daughter, she’s in university. I had called her up thinking that it was her birthday, but it wasn’t. I felt really bad about doing that.
Chantel: My mom has trouble asking for help, so I’m asking for her. My name is Chantel. I am Janet’s daughter. I’m 20 years old. I go to York University. We’re really hoping that she can get into this treatment, because it would really give her her life back. What it would mean for me if my mom were to get this treatment is I would get my mom back. She would be herself again and I could tell her things and she would remember them.
Before booking anything, a Canadian patient can find out whether HSCT is likely to help. The review by the HSCT specialist doctors at HSCT Hospital India costs nothing and carries no obligation.
Why Choose HSCT Hospital India for Life Changing Multiple Sclerosis Treatment
HSCT Hospital India is one of the finest private hospitals in India and Accredited by JCI-USA. Most Affordable, 30,000 US $ HSCT package includes complete treatment cost for 30 days in hospital stay in a deluxe private room, Doctors Fee, Tests and Consultations, Medicines, Consumables, Physiotherapy and also Food and Laundry for both the patient and the attendant, Airport Transfers etc. Large number of patients from Europe, America and Australia already treated successfully. Click here to know more
Complete 30 day HSCT done in hospital. Private deluxe rooms are very well served for patient and attendant comfort and equipped with HEPA Filter with Triple Level Air Filtration. No outside hospital stay avoids risk of infection during the aplastic phase, 24 x 7 nursing care and best medical attention. Advanced HSCT protocol used does not require any further chemo or treatment after leaving the hospital. Click here to get complete details
International and Globally Renowned Accreditations. HSCT Hospital India is accredited by the Joint Commission International, USA, the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers (NABH), and the National Accreditation Board for Laboratories (NABL) for processes and high quality patient care. Click here to know more
More than 1,500 patients from Europe, America and Australia have already been treated successfully at HSCT Hospital India. Our multi-disciplinary team reviews every multiple sclerosis referral, including the EDSS recorded by the treating neurologist, the MRI sequence over time and the relapse history, before any decision is taken. Click here to watch patient testimonial videos
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Complete 30 day HSCT done in hospital. Private deluxe rooms are very well served for patient and attendant comfort and equipped with HEPA Filter with Triple Level Air Filtration. No outside hospital stay avoids risk of infection during the aplastic phase, 24 x 7 nursing care and best medical attention. Advanced HSCT protocol used does not require any further chemo or treatment after leaving the hospital. 
International and Globally Renowned Accreditations. HSCT Hospital India is accredited by the Joint Commission International, USA, the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers (NABH), and the National Accreditation Board for Laboratories (NABL) for processes and high quality patient care. 
