Dr. Dempsey on leading edge treatments she is finding helpful

Dr. Tania Dempsey explains several "advanced" therapies she uses for complex, inflammatory, multi-system illness (MCAS, vector-borne infections, mold toxicity, dysautonomia, long COVID, ME/CFS). She stresses these are built on a foundation of basics (diet, triggers, sleep, meds) and that her thinking has shifted from reserving them as last resort to sometimes using them earlier to "move the needle" so patients can tolerate other treatments. She gives the most detail on: (1) Therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE/apheresis/PLEX) – a 2–2.5 hour procedure where plasma is removed, replaced with albumin and a tiny IVIG dose, and repeated 4–6 times to remove autoantibodies, inflammatory cytokines, mast cell mediators, microclots, toxins, and possibly microplastics; she reports notable symptom improvements (including MCAS and neurologic symptoms) in selected patients but emphasizes careful patient selection, vein access, cost, and short-term fatigue as key considerations. (2) SOT / Q-RESTRAIN – an individualized IV oligonucleotide (antisense) therapy originally from cancer research, now used to target specific infections (Lyme, Bartonella, Babesia, viruses, etc.) by binding their DNA and stopping replication over 4–6 months; she uses it mainly to lower pathogen load when antibiotics fail or aren’t tolerated, usually needing repeated and multi-pathogen courses plus strong MCAS support. (3) Ozone therapy with optional UV blood irradiation – either as major autohemotherapy or via a more powerful German “10‑pass” machine that repeatedly ozonates and returns the blood (often through UV light), aiming to improve tissue oxygenation, kill microbes, lower inflammatory burden, and support recovery in Lyme, long COVID and post‑COVID states; she describes her own rapid post‑hospital COVID recovery with intensive 10‑pass ozone. Across all therapies, she frames chronic infection and MCAS as chronic inflammation/inflammaging problems, uses these tools to decrease inflammatory and infectious burden so the immune system can regain control, and notes that while results can be dramatic in some, they’re variable, not cures, not right for everyone, and generally not covered by insurance at this time.