An absolutely amazing story reached the media this week where woman named April Burrell who was diagnosed with a severe form of schizophrenia at the age of 21 after experiencing a traumatic event.
It started with a constant state of visual and auditory hallucinations. She went from high school valedictorian to no longer being able to communicate or take care of herself. She was catatonic.
Multiple treatments for schizophrenia were tried and failed. Two decades later, a treating physician decided to look at the lupus she had. Lupus is an autoimmune condition. Autoimmune conditions can attack the skin, joints, internal organs, and even the brain.
Scientists around the world in Germany and Britain, as well as in New York State have been finding inflammatory processes related to autoimmune conditions can cause psychiatric symptoms. More so than anybody previously understood.
When they took a look at April’s immune system, they saw an overproduction of many types of antibodies that were attacking her brain. There was evidence on her MRI of the brain that there was damage to her temporal lobes. These are the lobes that are implicated in schizophrenia and psychosis. The idea is the antibodies have altered the receptors that bind glutamate, an important neurotransmitter, that disrupts how neurons can send signals to one another.
Her latest team of doctors started immunotherapy for neuropsychiatric lupus. She was put on pulse dose steroids for five days plus a single dose of cyclophosphamide. Cyclophosphamide is used in chemotherapy for cancers. She was also treated with rituximab. A drug that is also used to treat cancers. She could tolerate one round of this therapy per month and then they would allow her immune system to recover.
Astonishingly, April started showing improvement almost immediately. They administered the Montreal Cognitive Assessment at the on start of treatment, where she was able to draw a clock at the level of a patient with severe dementia, the drawing just looked like scribbles. It didn't resemble a clock at all. After two rounds of treatment, she was able to draw half of a clock. After the third round of treatment, the clock was almost perfect.
After she completed her treatment, she was able to recognize her family again, remember her brother's wedding, the grades she got in school and her childhood home.
Since then, there was another young lady, Divine Cruz who was nine years old when she also was diagnosed with a severe schizophrenia. Visual and auditory hallucinations as well as delusions. She was tried on many different medications specific for these diagnoses with no improvement. Devine also had lupus. She was diagnosed about the age of 14. When her team of doctors realized that there was an improvement in the schizophrenia with treating the lupus they went ahead and tried it. And sure enough, just like in April’s case, Divine showed dramatic improvement. She's made a recovery back to the point where she can babysit her nieces and nephews. She can look back and recognize that she did have delusions.
It is very rare and exciting to hear of a story like this! A true modern day miracle. You can read the originally published story in the Washington Post by clicking the link below.