Jada Bascom Foundation
All conditions

Autoimmune conditions

Highly active relapsing multiple sclerosis

Also called: MS · RRMS · highly active MS · highly active relapsing MS · multiple sclerosis · Disseminated sclerosis · Relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis · Aggressive multiple sclerosis

What a donor has to do with this

A stem cell transplant is common for this condition, but it almost always returns the person’s own cells, collected in advance. No donor is involved. This is the part of transplantation most people have never heard about.

This is our reading of published transplant guidelines for this condition, not a measurement of how many people need a donor. Where a source actually counted donors, the figure and the people it counted are shown further down. Where none did, we say so rather than estimate.

What the evidence says

Who it affects
The UK NHS profile reviewed in 2024 describes the broader multiple-sclerosis population—not specifically the highly active relapsing subtype—as most often diagnosed across ages 20–50 and more common in women than men.
Treatments other than a transplant
High-efficacy disease-modifying therapies include anti-CD20 agents (ocrelizumab/ofatumumab), natalizumab, alemtuzumab, cladribine, and other regionally approved DMTs.; Corticosteroids treat acute relapses; rehabilitation and symptom-directed therapy remain important.; Randomized trials comparing autologous HCT directly with contemporary high-efficacy DMTs remain ongoing.
If a transplant is used, the cells come from
autologous mobilized peripheral-blood stem cells (dominant contemporary source); CD34-selected or unmanipulated autologous peripheral-blood grafts; bone marrow: not reported in the opened disease-specific sources; cord blood: not reported in the opened disease-specific sources
How often the donor was unrelated
Not reported. No source we could read states this for this condition, so we do not give a number. An estimate here would be a guess dressed as evidence.

Where this gets complicated

This row is restricted to highly active relapsing multiple sclerosis; primary-progressive, secondary-progressive, and other MS forms do not inherit its HCT claims and require separate evidence assessment.; The role against the newest high-efficacy DMT sequences is still being tested in randomized trials.; Although rare allogeneic experiences exist, contemporary MS transplantation is autologous; donor-share fields therefore do not apply.

Written for transplant clinicians, not for patients. We quote it so you can see what the guidance actually says:
“Currently, auto-HCT is recommended as a standard of care for patients with active relapsing MS failing DMTs.”

It describes what teams consider in general. It cannot say what applies to any one person. Read the source.

We are not asking you to register on this page

A transplant for this condition almost always uses the person’s own cells, so a donor would make no difference to it. Registries do need people — just not for this. Other conditions in the library are a different story.

What a transplant using your own cells involves

Related conditions

Others in autoimmune conditions. They are genuinely different diseases with different treatments — the group name is not a diagnosis.

Where this came from