How strong is the evidence for stem-cell therapy in Multiple Sclerosis?
ClinicalTrials.gov registrations alone cannot establish how strong the evidence is. Registry activity is active but still early, with limited late-phase registration: the registry holds 92 records, 38 completed, 3 at Phase 3 or 4, and 18 stopped early (20%). MSC-specific work accounts for 37 of those records. These counts describe research activity and maturity, not benefit, safety or certainty. Snapshot 2026-08-29.
What counts as a real result in Multiple Sclerosis
Credible endpoints are relapse rate, MRI lesion activity, confirmed disability progression and, for transplant, event-free survival over years. MS fluctuates and relapses resolve spontaneously, so post-treatment improvement without imaging and a comparator is uninterpretable.
What we can say from registrations alone
- Volume: 92 registered studies since 1997.
- Maturity: 3 confirmatory-phase records.
- Delivery: 38 completed; 18 terminated, withdrawn or suspended.
- Scale: median planned enrolment 24 participants, largest 35,000.
The completed studies
Completed does not mean published, and published does not mean positive. These are the finished records — the starting point for checking whether results ever appeared.
| Study | Phase | Status | Planned n | Lead sponsor | Start |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCT01953523 — Safety and Clinical Outcomes Study: SVF Deployment for Orthopedic, Neurologic, Urologic, and Cardio-pulmonary Conditions | n/a | Completed | 3,000 | Elliot Lander | 2013-09-02 |
| NCT05029206 — Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis in Sweden | n/a | Completed | 174 | Uppsala University | 2021-05-05 |
| NCT00273364 — Stem Cell Therapy for Patients With Multiple Sclerosis Failing Alternate Approved Therapy- A Randomized Study | Phase 2 | Completed | 110 | Northwestern University | 2005-11-16 |
| NCT02601131 — Post-transfusion Platelet Count | n/a | Completed | 80 | Region Skane | 2016-02 |
| NCT03326505 — Allogenic Mesenchymal Stem Cells And Physical Therapy for MS Treatment | Phase 1, Phase 2 | Completed | 60 | University of Jordan | 2017-09-25 |
| NCT03355365 — Intrathecal Administration of Autologous Mesenchymal Stem Cell-derived Neural Progenitors (MSC-NP) in Progressive Multiple Sclerosis | Phase 2 | Completed | 54 | Tisch Multiple Sclerosis Research Center of New York | 2018-09-21 |
What registrations cannot tell you
Whether results were positive. Whether they were published at all — a large share of registered studies never report outcomes, which biases what the literature appears to show. And whether the product a commercial clinic sells resembles the product studied: cell source, dose, processing and delivery route vary enormously between a registered protocol and an off-protocol injection.
How to use this when someone is selling you a treatment
Ask which specific registered study supports the offer, then compare its intervention description with your quote. If the answer is a general gesture at "Multiple Sclerosis research", you are being sold the field's activity rather than evidence about the product. The Provider Question Builder turns that gap into questions.
Frequently asked
How strong is the evidence for stem-cell therapy in Multiple Sclerosis?
ClinicalTrials.gov registrations alone cannot establish how strong the evidence is. Registry activity is active but still early, with limited late-phase registration: 92 registered records, 3 at Phase 3/4 and 18 stopped early (2026-08-29).
Has any stem-cell product been approved for this condition?
Look it up at source: regulators publish authorised products and indications. Registration of a trial, a licence to operate a clinic and product approval are three different things.
Why do clinics cite hundreds of studies?
Because counting registrations is easy and sounds authoritative. The number that matters is how many controlled studies reported a clinically meaningful outcome for the product being sold.
Registry and literature counts retrieved 2026-08-29 (ClinicalTrials.gov API v2; PubMed E-utilities). Registration or publication volume measures research activity, not effectiveness or approval. Educational information — not medical advice; verify product, indication, legal pathway and evidence with an independent qualified physician. Page generated 2026-08-29. See our editorial standards.
More on this condition
- Multiple Sclerosis: cell-therapy evidence and registered trials
- How much does stem cell therapy for Multiple Sclerosis cost? (2026)
- Multiple Sclerosis stem cell therapy — your questions answered (2026)
- Multiple Sclerosis: cell-therapy evidence by therapy class
- MSC vs HSCT for Multiple Sclerosis: what the registries show