Here is a synopsis on a story regarding stem cell therapy for stroke victims...
Detroit Red Wings hockey legend Gordie Howe is reported to be making a dramatic recovery after undergoing stem cell therapy in December, 2014. He reportedly had the treatment performed in Tijuana, Mexico. His health had been declining over the past many months due to a series of strokes.
The 86 year old legend actually attended a dementia fundraiser in Canada over the weekend of February 6, 2015, a trip that his family had previously said he was too ill to make. However, he has had such a dramatic improvement in his health since the stem cell therapy that he was able to make the long trip.
His son, Mark Howe, publicly stated that prior to December his father had almost completely stopped functioning in any normal manner. He noted an almost immediate improvement after the treatment, with his father now able to walk on his own, feed himself, and help fold laundry, all of which he was previously unable to do.
The therapy were performed in Mexico where there are less restrictions on stem cell treatments. Gordie was interested in a study in the US but one of the criteria is waiting until at least 6 months after the stroke. There is some preliminary data suggesting that the earlier the treatment after a stroke, the better. Thus the Howe family elected to have treatment sooner in Mexico.
To see more from an article in the San Diego Union-Tribune updated on Feb. 7, 2015, please follow this link:
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/dec/25/gordie-howe-stem-cell-stemedica-novastem-hockey/
Monday, February 23, 2015
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
The Obesity - Cancer Connection
A team of researchers from Tulane University published a very intriguing report in the February 2015 issue of Stem Cells that focuses on the manner in which stem cells directly influence obesity-associated cancers.
These findings have profound effects in our understanding of adipose (fat) cells, adipose stem cells (ASC's), and cancer cells specifically related to obesity. The interplay between these is not only fascinating, but also may lead to future treatments for a variety of these types of cancer.
This study is especially important at a time when the obesity rates globally continue to increase. It is estimated that one third of American adults are obese, meaning over 80 million people in this country alone. The World Cancer Research Fund used meta-analysis research in 2007 to study the effects of obesity on incidence of cancer and the associated mortality. They found that as fat levels increase, so do the rates of colorectal, renal, and postmenopausal breast carcinomas. See the website at http://www.wcrf.org/int/cancer-facts-figures/link-between-lifestyle-cancer-risk/cancers-linked-greater-body-fatness. A number of other studies have also shown increases in cancer among obese patients - this includes prostate, endometrial, liver, ovarian, and esophageal cancers, along with hematological malignancies, and certain lymphomas and melanomas.
Here are some more links in regards to specific cancers:
General obesity - http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(02)00849-5/abstract?cc=y ; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19824817
Prostate cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17507151
Endometrial cancer - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1471-0528.12106/abstract ;
http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ogi/2011/308609/
Liver cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15508109
Ovarian cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23402904
This is only a very small amount of data in regards to this topic, as a complete list of the studies is too numerous to provide here.
This previous research found a link between obesity and certain cancers, yet the actual causal mechanism had not been found. The just-published study suggests that stem cells are altered by obesity and integrate into the tumors themselves, providing support for tumor growth. Genes from ASC's in obese patients are expressed differently from those in normal wight individuals, and the data gathered tends to imply that the ASC's from obese patients have an increased propensity to assist cancer cells and further their survival. The number of stem cells in circulation was significantly greater in obese patients, even further increasing the likelihood of these ASC's having the opportunity to migrate to the tumor site and encourage further cancer growth. And finally, the ASC's from the obese population expressed a greater amount of certain chemical factors that aid cancer cell proliferation and even migration/metastasis.
These findings are just the beginning in terms of research on obesity-linked cancers. Future investigation will focus on how obesity changes our stem cells and predisposes to an increased incidence of cancer, and will also hopefully lead to information that might help eventually reduce cancer risk. Also, as growing research is showing, there will be ways to use stem cells to fight various cancers, by changing how the stem cells work and making them actually inhibit growth and even destroy cancer cells.
These findings have profound effects in our understanding of adipose (fat) cells, adipose stem cells (ASC's), and cancer cells specifically related to obesity. The interplay between these is not only fascinating, but also may lead to future treatments for a variety of these types of cancer.
This study is especially important at a time when the obesity rates globally continue to increase. It is estimated that one third of American adults are obese, meaning over 80 million people in this country alone. The World Cancer Research Fund used meta-analysis research in 2007 to study the effects of obesity on incidence of cancer and the associated mortality. They found that as fat levels increase, so do the rates of colorectal, renal, and postmenopausal breast carcinomas. See the website at http://www.wcrf.org/int/cancer-facts-figures/link-between-lifestyle-cancer-risk/cancers-linked-greater-body-fatness. A number of other studies have also shown increases in cancer among obese patients - this includes prostate, endometrial, liver, ovarian, and esophageal cancers, along with hematological malignancies, and certain lymphomas and melanomas.
Here are some more links in regards to specific cancers:
General obesity - http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(02)00849-5/abstract?cc=y ; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19824817
Prostate cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17507151
Endometrial cancer - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1471-0528.12106/abstract ;
http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ogi/2011/308609/
Liver cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15508109
Ovarian cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23402904
This is only a very small amount of data in regards to this topic, as a complete list of the studies is too numerous to provide here.
This previous research found a link between obesity and certain cancers, yet the actual causal mechanism had not been found. The just-published study suggests that stem cells are altered by obesity and integrate into the tumors themselves, providing support for tumor growth. Genes from ASC's in obese patients are expressed differently from those in normal wight individuals, and the data gathered tends to imply that the ASC's from obese patients have an increased propensity to assist cancer cells and further their survival. The number of stem cells in circulation was significantly greater in obese patients, even further increasing the likelihood of these ASC's having the opportunity to migrate to the tumor site and encourage further cancer growth. And finally, the ASC's from the obese population expressed a greater amount of certain chemical factors that aid cancer cell proliferation and even migration/metastasis.
These findings are just the beginning in terms of research on obesity-linked cancers. Future investigation will focus on how obesity changes our stem cells and predisposes to an increased incidence of cancer, and will also hopefully lead to information that might help eventually reduce cancer risk. Also, as growing research is showing, there will be ways to use stem cells to fight various cancers, by changing how the stem cells work and making them actually inhibit growth and even destroy cancer cells.
Monday, February 2, 2015
Cancer-Killing Stem Cells
Researchers at Harvard Medical School have engineered cancer-killing stem cells in laboratory mice. These scientists, working specifically at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital, released the results of this pioneering study in the February 2015 issue of Stem Cells. Through experiments on mice, stem cells were genetically altered to produce and secrete toxins that specifically target brain tumors while causing no harm to themselves or normal brain cells in the process.
Genetic engineering allowed these researchers to develop a strain of stem cells that are resistant to the toxins they produce, while also secreting specific cytotoxins that kill glioblastoma tumors in the brain. The toxins are specifically a Pseudomonas exotoxin, which has previously been used as an antitumor agent. However, there had always been problems in the past with using this toxin clinically on patients; some of the issues encountered include difficulty reaching the tumor itself/off-target delivery, a short lifespan, and systemic toxicity. By altering the stem cells to overcome these issues, it has allowed for a novel approach to using this type of technology in a meaningful way. In the tests themselves, the stem cells were placed in a biodegradable synthetic gel and then placed at the site of the tumor, after it had been excised from the mouse brain. The cancer cells were then exposed to the toxins and died, while leaving the stem cells and normal tissue unharmed.
The next step in this research will be to test other therapies on the glioblastoma cancer cells in mice using the same delivery method. Then, eventually this technique will have to be tested on humans. Glioblastoma is the most common brain tumor in human adults, so this research is very relevant to survival of these patients.
This type of research also opens the door to using similar techniques to treat a wide array of solid tumors. Once again, this highlights the amazing abilities of stem cells in the future of modern medicine.
Genetic engineering allowed these researchers to develop a strain of stem cells that are resistant to the toxins they produce, while also secreting specific cytotoxins that kill glioblastoma tumors in the brain. The toxins are specifically a Pseudomonas exotoxin, which has previously been used as an antitumor agent. However, there had always been problems in the past with using this toxin clinically on patients; some of the issues encountered include difficulty reaching the tumor itself/off-target delivery, a short lifespan, and systemic toxicity. By altering the stem cells to overcome these issues, it has allowed for a novel approach to using this type of technology in a meaningful way. In the tests themselves, the stem cells were placed in a biodegradable synthetic gel and then placed at the site of the tumor, after it had been excised from the mouse brain. The cancer cells were then exposed to the toxins and died, while leaving the stem cells and normal tissue unharmed.
The next step in this research will be to test other therapies on the glioblastoma cancer cells in mice using the same delivery method. Then, eventually this technique will have to be tested on humans. Glioblastoma is the most common brain tumor in human adults, so this research is very relevant to survival of these patients.
This type of research also opens the door to using similar techniques to treat a wide array of solid tumors. Once again, this highlights the amazing abilities of stem cells in the future of modern medicine.
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