(AP)-Doctors are reporting a major advance in stroke care. They say that stents similar to ones that are used to open clogged heart arteries also can be used to clear a blood clot in the brain, and that this cuts the risk a patient will end up disabled.

The key to surviving a stroke is getting help fast. The first treatment usually is clot-dissolving medicine but it doesn’t always work. Three studies tested mesh cages called stents that are pushed through a blood vessel to trap and remove the clot. The treatment was so successful that all three studies were stopped early so it could be offered more widely.

The studies were discussed Wednesday at an American Stroke Association conference in Nashville.