IF YOU EXAMINE THE STEM CELL STORIES BREAKING EVERY DAY YOU WILL FIND PHRASES LIKE "MAY" AND "POTENTIAL."  AS I LOOK AT THE NEW STORIES FOR TODAY, I SEE HEADLINES LIKE "Stem Cells From Menstrual Blood Show Therapeutic Potential" AND "New use of stem cells to heal lame horses may lead to human applications" BUT THE QUESTION THIS REPORTER IS ASKING IS WHEN IS THIS GOING TO HELP THE PATIENTS??  THAT IS THE MAIN POINT OF THIS BLOG.  THERE ARE MANY STEM CELL TREATMENTS (ALL OF THEM ARE ADULT STEM CELL TREATMENTS NOT EMBRYONIC)  OUT THERE HELPING PEOPLE NOW AND I AM TRYING TO MAKE PEOPLE AWARE OF THEM.  UNFORTUNATELY, THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA EITHER DOESN'T WANT TO REPORT THEM BECAUSE IT DOESN'T FIT THEIR EMBRYONIC STEM CELL AGENDA OR THEY ARE TOO LAZY TO GO DIGGING AND FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THESE  ADULT STEM CELL TREATMENTS THAT ARE BEING USED NOW IN CHINA, MEXICO, GERMANY, ARGENTINA, PERU AND MANY OTHERS.

 

A hint would be nice on stem-cell breakthroughs

By Lyndsay Moss

 

I HAVE lost count of the number of times in the past week that a scientist has sighed quietly at me, trying to hide their disdain as I ask the question they seem to dread.

 

"So how long will it be before this turns into treatment for patients?" I ask one stem-cell researcher after another. Cue sighs, a lengthy response that tells you nothing and eventually, if you are lucky, there will come a non-committal reply that it will be "several years".

 

I MEAN A BRAVE SOUL IN THE BEST POSSIBLE CONTEXT:

David Maynard knows it sounds crazy.

But crazy to him is the thought of living another year with the injury that has dogged him for nearly a decade.

Five surgeries, and still no relief from the numbness in his right leg that limits his mobility. And perhaps worse, no answers.

The Quincy resident is preparing to go to China to undergo cutting-edge surgery not available in the United States because it is regarded as risky. Doctors there will inject stem cells from an umbilical cord into Maynard's spine.

WHY DOES HE HAVE TO GO ALL THE WAY TO CHINA TO GET STEM CELL TREATMENT WITH CORD BLOOD STEM CELLS (NOT EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS) ?

Maynard said. “I'm going over for the treatment, and I wouldn't be going over there if they offered it here.

I SEE.  GO ON MR. MAYNARD:

Maynard knows the therapy isn't a panacea he expects months of physical therapy after undergoing the surgery.

But he has more hope now than in he's had nine years, time spent visiting doctor after doctor, getting frustrated by a lack of direction and support.

“I think some doctors have gotten to the point where they practice what I call conveyor belt medicine, Maynard said. “They just keep pushing you through to the next test, the next surgery.

NEW HOPE.  ADULT STEM CELL THERAPY IS NOT ONLY GIVING PATIENTS WITH PREVIOUSLY INCURABLE CONDITIONS HOPE, IN MANY CASES (LIKE KADI IN THE PREVIOUS POST BELOW)  IT IS GIVING THEM A NEW LIFE.

THIS IS A VERY NICE STORY (SEE BELOW).  A YOUNG WOMAN GETS IN A HORRIBLE CAR ACCIDENT AND IS PARALYZED AND IS HIT WITH THE PROGNOSIS THAT SHE WILL NEVER WALK AGAIN.  BUT KADI DEHAAN DIDN'T ACCEPT THAT.  AND NOW, WITH SOME HELP FROM ADULT STEM CELL THERAPY SHE IS WALKING AGAIN AND HOPEFULLY IN THE NEAR FUTURE SHE WILL BE RUNNING AGAIN. 

No one can say for sure if nearly two years of experimental (STEM CELL) treatments or hours upon hours of physical therapy -- a trio of three-hour sessions every week -- led Kadi to where she is today.

Probably both, said Burns, whose clients sometimes head to Russia or Portugal or China for treatments that aren't approved in the U.S. and generally aren't covered by insurance.

The physical therapy is a very important component, "but it's definitely Russia," that put Kadi back on her own two feet, Kadi's mom, Bonnie, insisted. "There are just too many coincidences. Kadi knows that what she's got she got from Russia."

FOR MORE ON WHAT IS GOING ON IN RUSSIA AND MORE ABOUT KADI CLICK ON THIS LINK 

YESTERDAY, I POSTED AN ARTICLE WHICH WASN'T EXACTLY PULITZER PRIZE WINNING MATERIAL (SCROLL DOWN TO SEE IT).  THE WRITER OF THIS STORY CONCENTRATES ON THE FACTS AND DOESN'T TRY TO PUSH ANY AGENDA.  AS A RESULT, WE HAVE A VERY NICE TALE ABOUT STEM CELL TREATMENT FOR MULTIPLE MYELOMA.

IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT MULTIPLE MYELOMA IS, THE ARTICLE KINDLY GIVES A DESCRIPTION-

Multiple myeloma is a cancer of the blood that affects the plasma cells. Plasma cells are an important part of the immune system; they produce antibodies to help fight infection and disease. Multiple myeloma is characterized by an excess production of abnormal plasma cells. Symptoms include increased risk of bacterial infections and impaired immune responses.

WHAT IS THE PROCESS?

The procedure began in March when the patient, Virginia Case of Troy, was given medication that stimulates bone marrow to push out the autologous stem cells, also called progenitor cells. Autologous stem cells mean They're generated by the person who will receive them. They're not the embryonic stem cells that stirred a controversy across the country.


The medication is administered over 72 hours, and then the patient is hooked up to a Pheresis machine that draws out blood, returning red blood cells to the body while retaining plasma. The process took eight hours on March 24 and was repeated for another eight hours on March 25, according to Betty Roczniak, the reference lab supervisor at the blood center in the Hanover Industrial Park.

THEN WHAT HAPPENS?

The Red Cross sent a worker to Sayre each day to pick up the bag of plasma and bring it back to Luzerne County. Laboratory workers then concentrated the plasma to the point where only stem and other cells remained. A preservative was added and the bags frozen at negative 116 degrees.

Case underwent chemotherapy this week, which destroyed the cancer cells in her marrow.

Today, the bags will be delivered to the Guthrie Cancer Center at Robert Packer Hospital, thawed and then administered intravenously to Case, who's in her 60s.

The stem cells will find their way back into the bone marrow and repopulate it, Roczniak said, adding “They're very intelligent.

THIS IS THE WAY AN ARTICLE SHOULD BE WRITTEN.  WELL RESEARCHED, FACTUAL, NON OPINIONATED.  AGAIN, LIKE YESTERDAY, I WISH THE LADY IN THE ARTICLE ALL THE BEST WITH HER STEM CELL TREATMENT.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE 

AS YOU WELL KNOW, I USUALLY GET EXCITED ABOUT A MAN/WOMAN LEAVING THE USA TO RECEIVE A NEW STEM CELL TREATMENT THAT GIVES THEM HOPE AND HOPEFULLY A NEW LEASE ON LIFE.  HOWEVER, THIS STORY (SEE BELOW) LEAVES ME PERPLEXED.

  DENVER  --  27-year old Ryan McLean is getting set to under go experimental therapy involving human embryonic stem cells.   THIS ISN'T GOOD NEWS AS SCIENTISTS ARE STILL DECADES AWAY FROM SOLVING THE RIDDLES OF EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS.  TUMORS THAT LEAD TO CANCER IS THE MOST NOTABLE OF UNSOLVED PROBLEMS.

She was accepted as a volunteer for the treatment at a clinic in Delhi, India.  A VOLUNTEER?  SHE IS RECEIVING STEM CELL TREATMENT FOR FREE?

The program will cost about forty-thousand dollars. Friends and supporters have been raising funds for the woman who still loves being in the pool. We caught up with Ryan at the Boulder YMCA, poolside of course.  40 GRAND?  THAT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE A VOLUNTEER.  IS SHE REALLY PAYING 40 K FOR EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS?

While President Bush has been opposed to embryonic stem cell research, Japanese doctors are having success using umbilical cords to harvest stem cells.  THE WRITER GIVES THE OBLIGATORY "BUSH IS THE BAD GUY" TREATMENT.  TO BE FAIR, THE WRITER ISN'T LYING, BUT THE WRITER IS MISLEADING AND CONFUSING READERS WITH THAT STATEMENT, PROBABLY INTENTIONALLY.   UMBILICAL CORD STEM CELLS AND EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS ARE NOT THE SAME.  UMBILICAL CORD BLOOD STEM CELLS ARE DERIVED FROM THE UMBILICAL CORD OF A BABY.  EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS ARE DERIVED FROM THE EMBRYO OF AN UNBORN BABY.  WHAT DOES BUSH AND EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS HAVE TO DO WITH JAPANESE DOCTORS AND UMBILICAL CORD STEM CELLS?  ALSO, TO PILE ON A LITTLE MORE, WHILE JAPAN MAY VERY WELL BE USING UMBILICAL CORD CELLS IN SOME TREATMENTS, READERS OF THIS BLOG KNOW THAT MOST OF THE CORD BLOOD STEM CELL TREATMENTS GO ON IN CHINA.  I SUSPECT THE WRITER CONFUSED JAPAN AND CHINA

They have been treating Americans willing to travel to Japan for a few years.

No word on if Bush will allow that type of treatment even though it doesn't involve embryos.  BUSH DOESN'T DECIDE WHAT TREATMENTS ARE ALLOWED OR DISALLOWED.  THE FDA DOES.  IT DOESN'T MATTER WHO IS THE NEXT PRESIDENT, OBAMA, HILLARY OR MCCAIN, REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT, THEY WON'T DECIDE WHICH STEM CELL TREATMENTS ARE ALLOWED.  THEY MAY BE ABLE TO DECIDE WHICH STEM CELL RESEARCH IS TO BE FUNDED USING (WASTING?) TAX PAYER MONEY, BUT THEY HAVE NO INFLUENCE ON THE FDA WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR DECIDING WHAT TREATMENTS ARE ALLOWED. 

THESE QUESTIONS LEAVE ME DOUBTING THE AMOUNT OF RESEARCH GOING INTO THIS STORY.  I THINK THE YOUNG LADY IS GOING TO INDIA FOR CORD BLOOD STEM CELL TREATMENT.  THE STORY JUST DOESN'T ADD UP.  HOWEVER, ALTHOUGH I DOUBT THE FACTS OF THIS STORY, I STILL BELIEVE THERE IS A YOUNG LADY IN NEED OF HELP WHO IS IN NEED OF STEM CELL THERAPY, AND I WISH HER THE BEST OF HEALTH ON HER JOURNEY-DM

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE 

WE HAVE A REAL TREAT TODAY. THE ARTICLE (AND IT IS AN ARTICLE, NOT AN OP-ED) I AM PRESENTING IS ALMOST PERFECT. IT STARTS OFF WITH AN ADULT STEM CELL SUCCESS STORY AND MORPHS INTO A FACTUAL STORY SHOWING HOW FAR BEHIND EMBRYONIC STEM CELL RESEARCH IS COMPARED TO ADULT STEM CELLS. MY RANTS WOULDN'T DO THIS STORY JUSTICE. I URGE YOU TO READ THE WHOLE STORY FROM BEGINNING TO END TO UNDERSTAND WHAT I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO TRUMPET TO THE WORLD.

AND MEMO TO THE EDITORS OF THE BEACON JOURNAL: TRACY WHEELER, THE WRITER OF THIS ARTICLE, SHOULD GET A RAISE!

TRACY ADDRESSES ONE OF MY PEEVES-

''All they read about in the newspapers is the controversy surrounding embryonic stem cells, so they presume once you mention the word 'stem cells,' it's embryonic,'' said Laughlin, founder of the Cleveland Cord Blood Center. ''We find almost uniformly that the American public is confused and misinformed about stem cells in medical research and therapy. The average American public does not understand the distinction between embryonic stem cells and umbilical cord stem cells.'' (AND AUTOLOGOUS STEM CELLS-DM)

AND THE ADULT STEM CELL SUCCESS STORY-

Before the stem-cell transplant, Nemeth's stress test ended with him ''really huffing and puffing,'' barely able to stay on the treadmill for more than a few minutes. A year later, ''the tech kept ratcheting it up and finally he said, 'OK, Mr. Nemeth, you can get off.' ''

Now, Nemeth is walking at least six days a week for about a half-hour at the Solon Community Center.

AND THE ARTICLE ALSO INCLUDES ONE OF MY DREAMS-

''Easily in the next five to 10 years . . . we'll get to where one of the routine things your doctor does is store your own stem cells,'' she said. ''You'll have some personalized stem cells in the freezer someplace, so if you're in an accident, they'll be able to pull them out and treat you effectively.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE THING. READ IT ALL!    My apologies, the link was removed.  

THE GOOD PEOPLE AT THE TEXAS HEART INSTITUTE HAVE DONE IT AGAIN. THEY ARE LAUNCHING YET ANOTHER ADULT STEM CELL TRIAL. BEFORE, I BELIEVE THEIR STEM CELL TRIALS SUCCESSFULLY TREATED CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE PATIENTS. THIS TIME, IT WILL BE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT. THIS TIME THEY WILL INJECT THE ADULT STEM CELLS INTO THE VICTIMS HEART 10 DAYS AFTER THEY SUFFER A HEART ATTACK. THEIR THEORY IS THAT THE STEM CELLS WILL HELP HEAL THE HEART THUS PREVENTING CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE FROM EVER DEVELOPING. WHAT A CONCEPT! PREVENTION RATHER THAN REACTION. WHY WAIT FOR THE CONDITION TO BECOME LIFE THREATENING BEFORE GETTING STEM CELL TREATMENT? I SINCERELY HOPE THIS STEM CELL TRIAL IS A BIG SUCCESS FOR THE TEXAS HEART INSTITUTE.

"I think this is the most exciting stem-cell therapy in heart research today," said Dr. Emerson Perin, director of the Stem Cell Center at the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital and the study's other leader. "Because these new cell types are so powerful and they delivered directly to the heart damage, it should be great at promoting healing."

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE

YESTERDAY, I COVERED A STEM CELL TRIAL IN WHICH HEART ATTACK VICTIMS WERE GIVEN THEIR OWN STEM CELLS SHORTLY AFTER A HEART ATTACK. TODAY, I PRESENT YOU ANOTHER STUDY. THIS ONE WAS SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT AS IT TREATED HEART FAILURE PATIENTS WHO HAD SUFFERED A HEART ATTACK WAY BACK IN THE PAST. THIS IS A GREAT ARTICLE WRITTEN VERY CLEARLY SO NO TRANSLATION IS NEEDED BY YOURS TRULY.

READ ON-

Injections of patients' own muscle cells into scarred areas of the heart helped people with heart failure breathe a little better, walk a bit farther, and generally feel better. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. IT IMPROVED THE PATIENT'S LIFE!

 

 

 

 

But there was no evidence that their hearts were able to pump blood more effectively, and enlarged hearts did not shrink. OK, NOT POSITIVE, BUT IT IMPROVED THE PATIENT'S LIFE!  HAVE EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS EVER IMPROVED ANYONE'S LIFE?  WELL, MAYBE THE CHARLATANS HAVE IMPROVED THEIR LIVES FINANCIALLY, BUT NO PATIENT HAS EVER IMPROVED HIS/HER  HEALTH USING EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS.

IT LOOKS LIKE A COMPANY COMPOSED OF BIG NAME HOSPITALS IN THE US RECENTLY COMPLETED A STUDY SHOWING THAT ADULT STEM CELLS CAN HELP HEART ATTACK VICTIMS. TEXAS HEART INSTITUTE, MAYO CLINIC AND EMORY ARE AMONGST THE TEAM OF ALL STARS MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE. SINCE MOST OF THE ARTICLE IS SPOKEN IN DOCTOREZE (MEANING IT ISN'T WRITTEN FOR LAYMEN LIKE YOU AND ME), I WILL USE MY LINGUISTIC SKILLS TO TRANSLATE (I AM FLUENT IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES).

Amorcyte, Inc. (Amorcyte) announced today the completion of the phase I clinical trial of its lead product, AMR-001 an autologous stem cell product for the treatment of damaged heart muscle following acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

TRANSLATION- AMORTCYTE USED ADULT STEM CELLS (THE PATIENT'S OWN) TO TREAT HEART ATTACK VICTIMS (PRESUMABLY WITHIN ONE WEEK OF THEIR HEART ATTACKS) IN A PHASE I TRIAL (TO DEMONSTRATE SAFETY).

Arshed A. Quyyumi, MD, FRCP, FACC, Professor of Medicine, Cardiology, at Emory University School of Medicine and the trial's principal investigator. “This trial has demonstrated proof of principle for this type of cell-based therapy. We have shown that it is possible to take progenitor stem cells harvested and extracted from a patient's bone marrow shortly after a heart attack and deliver these cells back into the patient's heart with the intent of repairing the damaged heart muscle. We eagerly anticipate beginning a phase II trial.

TRANSLATION- THE TRIAL USING THE PATIENT'S OWN STEM CELLS WORKED! IT HELPED REPAIR DAMAGED HEART MUSCLE! I'M JUST NOT ALLOWED TO SAY THAT UNTIL WE FINISH A DOUBLE BLIND PHASE II TRIAL THAT SHOWS EFFICACY!- DM

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE

 A DOCTOR AT THE STANFORD UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE USED STEM CELLS TO HELP 3 PEOPLE SUFFERING FROM OSTEONECROSIS.  THIS STORY DESCRIBES A YOUNG MAN, ADAM VASSER, WHO WAS GOING TO NEED A KNEE REPLACEMENT BECAUSE OF A RARE CONDITION CALLED OSTEOCNECROSIS.  HOWEVER, DR. STUART GOODMAN TRIED IMPLANTING ADAM'S OWN BONE MARROW STEM CELLS INTO ADAM'S KNEE.  THESE DAYS, ADAM'S KNEE IS LIKE NEW AGAIN.  CHALK UP ANOTHER CONDITION THAT CAN BE TREATED WITH ADULT STEM CELL THERAPY.  I'M NO DOCTOR, BUT THIS MAY HAVE GOOD IMPLICATIONS FOR ARTHRITIS PATIENTS AS WELL.  WHY NOT TRY IT IF SOMEBODY HAS AN ARTHRITIC KNEE OR HIP?

READ ON FOR MORE ON THIS NEW STEM CELL TREATMENT STORY-

The 60-minute surgery, called osteoprogenitor cellular grafting, involves scooping out the dead bone and then filling the space in with new cellular matter.

"The key is to arrest or reverse the death of the bone," Goodman said. "If the cartilage is good, you get the dead bone out and give the cartilage a better foundation. If you have a salvageable joint in a young knee, you get in viable cells to repopulate that area of dead bone."

Goodman theorized that instead of using traditional bone grafting - a more invasive and painful solution - a better method might be using bone cells. The bone cells include young stem cells and progenitor cells that can actually grow into new bone. He withdrew bone marrow from the pelvic area, concentrated the stem cells and progenitors, then used a scaffolding device to help the cells adhere to the defect in the knee.

Vasser underwent the knee surgery the summer after he graduated from high school. He described a painful, monthlong recuperation period, but said that since then his knee has improved to be almost like new five years later. His mother showed a photo of him crouching behind the home plate, playing umpire in a baseball game the year following surgery.

"My knee has felt good ever since," Vasser said. "It's much stronger than it used to be. It used to lock up. Towards the end before the surgery, it got really bad. I'm refereeing, riding a bike. It doesn't affect it. It's fine."

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE THING