The Don Margolis Blog

Yesterday, I found a new blog helped set up by the Star-Telegram newspaper (Yes, the mainstream media of all people, who would have thunk it? )  in the Dallas/Fort Worth areas in Texas.  This is a special blog set up for two multiple sclerosis patients- Preston Walker, a Ft. Worth police sergeant and Richard Humphries, a nursing home administrator,  who had to travel to Costa Rica to receive stem cell therapy.  This stem cell treatment  has already helped them in less than one month.  My words can't do it justice.  Read the whole blog.  It is only two pages and describes their stem cell treatment/process in their own words in great detail.  If you or someone you know has multiple sclerosis (MS)- this is essential reading.

Start on this page - Multiple Sclerosis Stem Cell Therapy Blog

Then go to the May 2008 Archives and start from the beginning when they arrive in Costa Rica and follow them until now.  This just happened last month, so it is very recent.     Mr. Walker also generously invites people to email him.  If you have a spare moment, send him an email showing your support.  I think he would appreciate it.

That isn't the smoothest title of a blog post ever, but I wanted to get the full description of this stem cell article up there.  Ashton Santos, 17,  of New Smyrna Beach, Florida, is going to Costa Rica to get stem cell therapy to try to help his cerebral palsy and epilepsy.  Why does he have to leave the United States to receive this stem cell treatment? Let's ask Dr. Chris Cogle.  Maybe he knows:

 Stem cell researcher Dr. Chris Cogle at the University of Florida said he has mixed feelings about such enthusiasm. On the one hand, he said it is a positive step that such a family is actively using stem cells as a type of treatment.

"Unfortunately, we do not have all the opportunities in the United States to offer the family in regards to stem cells," he said.

And how does Ashton's mother feel about this? Let's see:

Santos has no qualms about subjecting her son to foreign medical establishments. After travels around the world, she has been exposed to other countries' health care systems and believes they may be better than what is available here.

"Other countries are more willing to try things," she said. "I also think in some ways they are more advanced than we are."

Ashton said he was excited and a bit nervous about his coming adventure, although he wasn't counting on anything.

"I am there to see what happens," the New Smyrna Beach High School junior said. "If it works, I will be happy. If it doesn't, we will try again." (You have to admire this attitude- DM)

Ashton, I wish you the best and I expect you to be another adult stem cell victory soon.  One day in the near future, I hope to help make this stem cell therapy available here in the United States so that you (and others like you) won't have to travel out of the country to get the treatment that you need.  

Click here to read the full article

It is no surprise to me or regular readers of this blog that adult stem cells have been shown to help peripheral vascular disease patients.  Time and time again we have seen patients who can't walk or are in danger of amputation of a leg/toe be implanted with adult stem cells and time and time again these patients improve significantly.  Here is yet another example of this, in an FDA approved trial no less:

“The similarity in the recovery of our patients is promising, said Dr. Lasala. “We find that the stem cells, once re-injected, go about forming new blood vessels, thus increasing circulation dramatically.

Drs. Lasala and Minguell have developed a treatment where a patient's own stem cells are taken from the hip, grown in a sterile environment and then re-infused into 38 areas of the leg.

So far, ten patients have received the stem cell treatment for peripheral vascular disease.

“Patients are experiencing increased mobility within weeks of their infusions. The continued improvement throughout their recoveries is a positive sign, Lasala said.

Carleton Wert could only walk 2 ½ minutes on the treadmill before he underwent the stem cell therapy. At his three week check-up, he clocked 4 minutes. Within two months, his time improved to over 10 minutes.

Similarly, Michael Pearl could not even undergo the treadmill test prior to his infusion in mid-November because his pain was so intense. He went from walking 5 minutes at his one-month check-up to 18 minutes at the three-month mark.

With increased mobility, Dr. Lasala's patients are resuming their normal routines. Wert, who was on disability because of the ischemia, is now seeking employment. Sharp has gone back to gardening, creating a new antique garden with her husband in their front yard (These people have been given their life back by adult stem cells!- DM)

Perhaps most striking is the transformation experienced by Penny Kibideaux. Running out of options to treat her ischemia, Kibideaux had already scheduled a leg amputation. Under the advice of her physician, Kibideaux went to see Dr. Lasala. Not only has he saved her leg, Kibideaux says he has saved her life. Just weeks after her November infusion, she walked several shopping malls as part of her Christmas shopping. She has also recently taken up line dancing. (Are you kidding me? Fantastic!- DM)

Click here to read the whole article

One day, I hope my International Adult Stem Cell Research and Therapeutic Treatments  Award (see below) will be as valuable as an Oscar, but these doctors have done far more than any Oscar winners to help their fellow human beings:

Professor Shimon Slavin of the International Center for Cell Therapy & Cancer (ICTC) at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, and Professor Dimitrios Karussis, senior neurologist at Jerusalem's Hadassah University Hospital, Ein Kerem, are the recipients of the "International Adult Stem Cell Research and Therapeutic Treatments Award 2008" by the Worldwide Center for Adult Stem Cell Education (WCASCE; http://www.Adultstemcelleducation.com). The first-of-its-kind award recognizes Professors Slavin and Karussis' achievements in adult stem cell clinical work and therapeutic treatments. WCASCE is based in Dallas, Texas with offices in Washington, D.C. and Bangkok, Thailand. Its mission is to educate the American public on the potential of adult stem cells for diagnosing, treating, curing and preventing disease.

I know what you are thinking - Who are these guys?:

According to Donald Margolis (that's me folks), WCASCE Chairman and Founder, "Professor Slavin is an expert bone marrow transplantation scientist and clinician. The former Director of Israel's National Stem Cell Transplantation Center at Hadassah before establishing the ICTC, Prof. Slavin will soon be among the few experts who also treat bone repair and reconstruction of cartilage in addition to innovative clinical application of stem cells and cell-mediated immunotherapy for the treatment of hematological malignancies, solid tumors and a broad spectrum of non-malignant disorders treatable by stem cell transplantation. Professors Slavin and Karussis' team are the first in the world to try and help multiple sclerosis and amyotropic lateral sclerosis patients by injecting their spinal fluid with large numbers of adult stem cells (mesenchymal stromal stem cells) taken from their bone marrow and multiplied in culture. Some of the patients' conditions have improved or stabilized in Phase I and II clinical trials."

Click here to read the whole thing

I don't like to toot my own horn- Ok, you know me- I love to toot my own horn. Seems as though the folks at the Imperial Valley News in Yuma, Arizona have taken a liking to me:

In America, the term "stem cells" is automatically associated with "embryonic stem cells," the cells that scientists can only extract by destroying a human embryo. But while American politicians, scientists and religious leaders debate moral issues, the rest of the world uses adult stem cells to treat, and heal patients.

Adult stem cells exist in every human being's tissues, where they help regrow skin, muscle and nerve cells. Scientists can extract adult stem cells from patients, then multiply the cells in labs. When the cells are injected back into a patient, they help grow healthy tissues.

In countries including the U.K., Thailand, China, Israel and Argentina, adult stem cells have successfully treated patients with everything from Hodgkin's lymphoma to broken bones.

Don Margolis (That's me!- DM) created the Worldwide Center for Adult Stem Cell Education LLC (WCASCE) to help Americans locate and use adult stem cell treatment centers. Through Margolis's Web site, http://donrmargolis.com/treatment.php, people can search a list of treatment centers for over 100 different diseases.

Click here to read the whole thing

No, this isn't an accidental repost of yesterday's story (scroll below) where we presented Brother Michael who was saved from the claws of multiple myeloma by an stem cell transplant-  using his own adult stem cells.  Today, I present to you a Mississippi man, William Lee, who was also saved from the clutches of multiple myeloma by stem cell therapy- and just like Brother Michael- from his own adult stem cells.

My hope is a multiple myeloma patient will somehow stumble onto this blog and find that there is still hope for them thanks to the power of adult stem cells- the patient's own stem cells.   Brother Michael and William Lee are both fine men and fine examples of stem cell treatments saving lives each and everyday.

More on the Clifford Lee story:

It's been nearly eight years since Attala County Sheriff William Lee was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the plasma cell, and with the help of chemotherapy, radiation and a stem cell transplant, he is a cancer survivor today. 

“Then, the process was ready for me to do the stem cell transplant, Lee said. “They took my blood and separated the good cells from the bad cells. They gave me my good cells back.

Click here to read the whole happy story. 

And the non-stop hits keep coming-- today I present to you a former principal, Michael Samuel, who was suffering from multiple myeloma. That is, he was suffering from multiple myeloma until he received a stem cell transplant- his very own adult stem cells:

Diagnosed in 2003, he underwent chemotherapy three times, had his stem cells harvested and spent three months in near isolation when doctors re-implanted his stem cells into his body.

Now he happily boasts that he is "not on any kind of medication".

Ironically, Mr. Samuel was helped by one of his former students:

he went to Dr Waveney Charles, former director of the Blood Bank, who put him in contact with the South Florida Bone Marrow/Stem Cell Transplant Institute, Florida, and its director, Dr Dipnarine Maharaj.

Samuel was also pleasantly surprised to learn that this "pioneer in stem cell treatments" was a past pupil of Presentation College.

Samuel speaks highly of Dr Maharaj.

"Everything he forecasted was right on target."

And how did the stem cell therapy work out for you "Brother Michael?"

"My last set of blood works show that I am in excellent condition. People have told me that I look younger that I did before. I suppose the stem cells are responsible for that," he laughs.

Click here to read the whole article

Another day, another life saved by adult stem cells.  Today, I present to you Amanda Swink, a Texas native who was suffering from what sounds like leukemia, although the reporter fails to mention that, instead saying she suffered from "cancer of the white blood cells."  Maybe I am nitpicking here, but this does seem a little strange so I thought I would point it out:

For 20 years, Swink had taken daily injections to beat a blood disorder that robbed her of natural immunity. But because of the treatment Swink developed cancer of the white blood cells, Dr. Edward Agoura of Baylor University Medical Center said.

However, in the grand scheme of things, that is meaningless because Amanda Swink still has a life thanks to her stem cell treatment:

A newborn's umbilical cord blood is typically thrown away but it can save lives. Amanda Swink is one patient who overcame a life-threatening disease because of cord blood treatment

Swink is now back to working full-time, is cancer-free and is cured of the immunity-robbing disease that kept her sick all her life.

Click here to read the whole wonderful story 

This isn't exactly a scoop I have here. The good folks at Vet-Stem have done it again. I promised if they keep helping improve the lives of pets (and in turn, their owner's lives as well) using the pet's own adult stem cells, I would keep posting the news stories about them:

Twyla Waters, a paralegal instructor at Southwest Tennessee Community College, opted for stem cell therapy for her 4-year-old German shepherd, Blue, in late January. Depending on the extent of disease, stem cell therapy costs about $4,000, comparable to a total hip replacement.

“Blue was always active; we go to Shelby Farms three times a week to run in the no-leash area, Waters said. “One day in November I noticed she was limping on her back left leg. I thought it was muscle strain.

X-rays showed Blue had a serious case of hip dysplasia, a degenerative disease so crippling that many dog owners ultimately choose euthanasia as the most humane treatment. Waters decided to fight the disease with stem cell therapy, believing Blue still had plenty of life in her.

Within a few days the dog was sitting better and had a stronger gait.

Another dog saved by their own adult stem cells! Wonderful! However, I found this very interesting too:

However, a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study funded by Vet-Stem last year found that dogs treated with stem cells do, indeed, have improvements in lameness, pain and range of motion.

This is the first I have heard of a double blind study on dogs. One of the obstacles of getting people to accept adult stem cell therapy as an everyday treatment is the lack of double blind studies done for any disease- animals or humans. If anyone has more on this study- results, details, etc. please send them to me.

Update: Ask and you shall receive.  "Reader" was kind enough to point out the results of Vet-Stem's double blind study.  Thank you "Reader." Click here to see!


Click here to read the whole article

To continue our sports theme this week, I'd like to introduce you to this story about Carlos Boozer's son, Carmani Boozer.  Now, to you sports fans, Carlos Boozer didn't have a great series when his Utah Jazz lost to the Los Angeles Lakers last week 4 -2.  However, I'm sure Carlos has put that in perspective when compared to the plight of his son, Carmani, who received a stem cell transplant to treat his sickle cell anemia.  6 months after his stem cell treatment, Carmani is doing great.  However, doctors say it will be about 6 more months before he is "in the clear."  Although I'm not a Utah Jazz fan, I am cheering for Carlos and Carmani in this more meaningful series:

Carlos Boozer has had to recover from a host of injuries that come with being a power forward in the NBA, yet he can only imagine what his son has endured in the last year.

Carmani has had chemotherapy, made countless trips to the doctor and spent weeks in the hospital before and after a bone-marrow (this means stem cell- DM) transplant that his parents hope wiped out his sickle cell anemia.

Six months later, Carmani is still free of the blood disorder, but Boozer and his wife, CeCe, have another six months of angst before knowing whether the procedure was a success.

Also worth noting- the Boozers have formed their own network for those affected by Sickle Cell Anemia.  It is called Boozer's Buddies, and you can find them here.

And as always, you can read the whole article here