Evelyn Hilton had a stroke on 29 June 2014. 鈥淚t was a Sunday,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 remember much about the stroke, but it was quite a bad one, and it left me with hardly any movement at all on the left side.
Hilton, from Kilmarnock, UK, was 58 at the time,
and definitely not ready to slow down. 鈥淚 just kept thinking I can鈥檛 have this permanently because I鈥檝e got too much to do,鈥� she recalls.
Advertisement
Stuck in hospital, and unable to control one side of her body, she volunteered for an experimental treatment in which a slurry of stem cells, the blank slate from which all other cell types can be made, was injected into her brain at the site of the stroke. At the time, the treatment had only been tried on a handful of people, but initial results suggested that it seemed safe, and potentially effective. It did, however, involve having a hole drilled through her skull.
It was a daunting prospect, but she was keen to go through with it. 鈥淚 was so desperate to be normal and to not have the stroke I was willing to try anything,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd I thought if it鈥檚 not going to do me any harm and it might help I鈥檓 going to go for it.鈥�
Within the limits
In stroke terms, Hilton was one of the lucky ones. She reached hospital within the 4 hours in which drugs can be given to dissolve the blood clot, limiting further damage. And because she was given the stem cells within the six-month window in which stroke patients can spontaneously improve, there is no way of knowing how much recovery she would have had without treatment. Even so, she has no regrets.
鈥淭he only thing I can say is that it鈥檚 two and a half years on from when I had the stroke and I am still having improvements,鈥� Hilton says. 鈥淚t has been slow and consistent and it鈥檚 still happening.鈥�
In the last few months, for example, she has recovered enough control over her left side to give up the walking stick she has relied on since she left hospital. 鈥淚 thought, I鈥檓 not having people thinking I鈥檓 an old fuddy-duddy, so I鈥檓 going to go without the stick. And I鈥檝e not used it since,鈥� she says.
It hasn鈥檛 proven to be a miracle cure, however. Hilton still struggles with her memory and movement in her left arm is still restricted. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not back to the way it was but it is 40 per cent of what it was. I鈥檓 lucky 鈥� I鈥檓 extremely lucky. I count myself very fortunate. So I鈥檓 happy, I don鈥檛 regret getting it done at all.鈥�
Read more:聽Cellular recovery: How self-help could aid the damaged brain
