HTLV services

St Mary's Hospital hosts the National Centre for Human Retrovirology, the national referral centre for patients with human T-cell lymphotropic virus (HTLV) infections. Services include:
• Pre-test information
• Diagnosis
• Long-term follow-up
• Specialist management of HTLV-associated diseases
• Patient information
• Research studies

Services are provided by a dedicated multi-disciplinary team. To use our HTLV services you will need a referral from your GP, another specialist or the National Blood Service. You may also self-refer.

Referrals
Referrals can be made by email, by post or by telephone.

Email
Referrals can be made via email to htlv@imperial.nhs.uk.

Post
Please write to:
Dr Graham Taylor
National Centre for Human Retrovirology
Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust
Clinical trials centre
Ground floor, Winston Churchill Wing
St Mary's Hospital
Praed Street
London W2 1NY

Telephone
Please contact Poupak Saleh, business manager for the HTLV group, on 020 3312 6604.

Clinical trials
We are running a three-year programme of research studies to investigate new treatments for HTLV-I-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP). The studies are sponsored by the Medical Research Council.

Ciclosporin trial
Patients are already enrolling in a trial of ciclosporin. Ciclosporin is currently used in the prevention of organ transplant rejection and is also widely used for the treatment of conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis, in which inflammation is important. The drug suppresses the activity of inflammatory cells and our researchers hope that this will reduce the amount of inflammation in the spinal cord of patients with HAM/TSP.

The study is for patients with a short duration of illness due to HAM/TSP or patients in whom the condition has recently progressed.

Other trials
Two further studies are at an advanced stage of planning. Please contact the National Centre for Human Retrovirology using the contact details above for more information.