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Heart Attack Victim Describes How Stem Cell Treatment Healed His Heart Muscle

Heart Attack Victim Recovers In Stem Cell Research Study

As part of a new stem cell treatment series, I am trying to find patients who have been helped by Adult Stem Cell research and therapy.  In May, I featured a Multiple Sclerosis patient named Arndt Roehlig who described his successful  stem cell experience in Israel in his own words.

Barry Brown- Stem Cell Study Volunteer

This time, I present Barry Brown, a heart attack victim who was involved in a stem cell research study at the University of Miami.  We had presented Barry before back in May in this stem cell post .  Barry was kind enough to write to me and wished to present his own stem cell success story in his own words.

A Stem Cell Success Story

Hey Don,  Barry here,  sorry its taken so long for me to do this but here goes.

Last February,  after moving from Las Vegas to Miami upon retiring from 20 years in the Air Force, I started getting a dry cough which upon doing some research on my own was attributed to the use of lisinopril.   My cough cleared up but I realized when i would start exerting during exercise I would get a hot flash down the middle of my shoulder blades I would just shrug it off thinking it was just the side effects of the BP drug. A few weeeks went by and I got a cold and I started coughing so much I coughed my chest sore and couldn’t breathe.  After about 10 days of suffering with this I finally went to the doctor.   An Ekg was conducted and the results came back Abnormal.  I’m like ok, Ive been exercising eating well, no caffiene, no Nicotine ( I had Dipped tobacco on and off for 20 yrs) I had just stopped in February.  So I thought  “whats going on?”

Heart Attack Misdiagnosed

The first diagnosis was I was out of shape and needed to lose about 10 lbs. Hmmmm ok ill buy that i need to lose a few lbs, but mind you, just 2  months before that, I was working out 5 days a week doing cardio 45 min a day and weights 3 times a week and teaching 2 circuit training classes so why had my cardiovascular health gone down so quick?? “Im not buying it Doc, run some more tests I want to get back to where i was 2 months ago and I want to make sure 1000% that my heart is healthy to exercise!”

Next test was an echocardiogram that showed some weakening of the lower part of my heart. The  2nd diagnosis was I  need to lose a few lbs and lets see how you are in a month…..”

I thought to myself ” how am I going to lose any weight?  first off if  I cant walk 15 minutes without feeling like i got 1000 slaps on the back for a good game????”

Watching Hugh Laurie and House Saves Barry’s Life

OK look Doc i said,  “Im no bleeping doctor, but Ive watched enough ER episodes and House to know you can run some dye thru my veins and check my arteries and valves.  I dont know what its called but thats what i want!!!!”

Thallium stress test was what i had done, I stayed on the treadmill about 4 min before I had to get off, the nurse said stay here we want to read the results……. the results were read and off to the 7th floor I went to meet with the Cardiac folks

I met with the Cardiologist he explained to me that they thought there was a blockage in my heart but they want to run a cath up my leg and angioplasty the blockage and put a stent in and that it should take no longer thatn 30 min. He said when can you come back mind you it had been about 2 months since it all first started so i said TOMORROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The day of the Cardiac cath comes, I get on the table and I’m on the table for what seemed like an eternity. The doctor  comes in and says “Mr. Brown we have a few things we need to discuss with you,  some options for you.  Did you know you’ve already had a heart attack?  Fighting back some tears and trying to regain some composure from the lil self deprecation and a little self pity that went through  my mind for a few minutes then a conscious decision made I wasn’t going to let this situation get the best of me. “Ok Doc what are the options???”

The options were laid out…..

  1. Option 1 was have a triple bypass get it over with and start living the life I was living just 12 months earlier.
  2. Option 2 enter into this radical new study involving stem cell therapy, help open the doors for new research and possibly ways were we can change the lives of others from now on. Where at the time of your surgery you may be injected with your own stem cells at several different areas on your heart with the hopes of healing some of the damaged tissue from your heart attack.  Hmmm that sounded interesting……

As I waited to hear option 3 which was I’m sure going to be take this pill go home and come back in a month you should be fine– it never came I was stuck with two options I guess……

So to me it was a no brainier-  enter into this study have the opportunity to be the FIRST devilishly handsome charming semi fit veteran to have this procedure done and open the doors for other to follow. PERFECT….. There pains and trails, as well as numerous sleepless nights that I had to endure of course this is real life, there was a point in Aug where tests had shown I had an enlarged prostrate so I needed to have to have a biopsy done to be cleared of cancer so  I could remain in the study. So, there I was thinking to myself wow I have Heart disease and prostrate cancer. I needed to be cancer free because if I had cancer when injected with the Stem cells it could move to the cancer and make it spread faster.

SO after a bunch more tests to get me back into the study since it had been over three months for all the initial work I was finally cleared back in…..

Then finally the date, Nov 20 2008 triple bypass day….. I’m lobbing congress to have that a legal holiday so you’ll have Veterans Day, Barry’s Bypass day and Thanksgiving all in Nov…

The 3 days I spent, no 4 days I spent in the hospital were a blur and that is where I made my mind up that I was going to get back on my feet and get busy getting healthy again. And it started with one of my post op meals ribeye steak and French fries……. Ok so the dietician was off the week I was in ICU no biggie….. Ill just get something else off the MENU…..

Of course anyone who has stayed in a Hospital knows you don’t get any rest in the hospital,  it really started with my release from the Hospital and qtr mile walks after 7 days,  to half mile walks after 2 weeks and pretty much adding mileage up to 3 miles in February when I started walking with a 30 lb pack 3 times a week. I’ve had days where my chest hurt so bad I didn’t want to do it but I pushed myself to do it so I could start strengthening my heart and get better so my quality of life would improve.

It has been a long road its been a challenge but with the great help of the Miami VA and the University of Miami Doctors and staff and the support of friends and family my outlook hasn’t looked better, From last summers 3 clogged arteries and not being able to walk a qtr mile, to my own fitness training and life expectancy its all good.

Its been pretty much a whirlwind the last week I was asked to be at the dedication of a new Stem cell research lab located with in the school of Medicine at UM and I did a TV interview the other day and word on the street  is that Mens Health wants to interview me also so more to come on that. Also with the help of one of my marketing friends Glen Werstler in Ohio and his marketing group at page gravy had started me out with my own web page and Non profit organization called One Heart to start foundation. I’m excited to try to get people more aware about this medical breakthrough. thanks for taking your time and reading.

Sincerely

Barry

Please feel free to email Barry at barry5448@yahoo.com if you have any questions or want to hear about his stem cell treatment for his heart muscle.

“a beating heart isnt always a healthy heart”


July 3, 2009 | 7:07 AM Comments  0 comments

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Take Another Little Piece of My Heart Stem Cells!

Stem Cell Research Treats First Patient With Stem Cells From His Own Heart

The song “Take another little piece of my heart” by Janis Joplin has new meaning today as doctors in Los Angeles have taken Adult Stem Cells directly from a heart attack patient’s heart and used those stem cells to treat the patient in an adult stem cell research study.

As part of a Phase 1 clinical research study, Dr. Eduardo Marban, of Ceders Sinai Hospital, did a minimally invasive biopsy and took a piece of Kenneth Milles heart muscle after Kenneth had suffered a heart attack.

The piece of his heart was sent to a lab where the Adult Stem Cells were cultivated to produce millions of Kenneth’s heart stem cells. 4 weeks later, the stem cells were implanted back into Kenneth’s heart muscle. The goal to help regenerate the damaged heart tissue from the heart attack.

From the stem cell article:

“We seek to actually reverse the injury that has been caused by the heart attack, by re-growing new heart muscle to at least partially replace the scar that’s formed,” says Dr. Eduardo Marban of Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute.

Doctors are using stem cells, the body’s master cells, because they can transform into different kinds of tissue.

Marban says, “These cells that we’re putting in come from the heart itself, and are predestined to generate heart muscle and blood vessels.”

Other types of stem cells, like bone marrow, have been studied for heart repair, but with mixed results. Animal studies indicate heart stem cells do a better job. The problem is: the heart has so few stem cells that researchers have to grow more.

And they did grow more- doesn’t seem like that big a problem.   Hopefully the money for this problem came from the California taxpayers- at least that would be the first positive that ever came out of their stem cell funding- using heart stem cells to help people.  However, the cynic in me says that is not the case.  I’m guessing it was privately funded.

Kenneth was the first patient treated with this method and the results are not in yet.  However, why wouldn’t it work? The patient’s own Adult Stem Cells are used.  The patient has nothing to lose.


July 1, 2009 | 2:07 AM Comments  0 comments

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Adult Stem Cell Research For COPD and Emphysema

Stem Cell Research for COPD and Emphysema

Dr. Roberto Fernandez Vina will present his stem cell study on Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Emphysema next week at the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) annual meeting in Barcelona, Spain.

Dr. Fernandez Vina who is also the chairman of the Repair Stem Cell Institute’s Science Advisory Board was the first stem cell doctor in the world to treat lung diseases such as COPD and Emphysema, starting in 2006.

Last Week Stem Cells For Diabetes Type 2, This Week - Lungs

I presented Dr. Vina’s amazing results for stem cell therapy for Diabetes Type 2 last week, so this week, as a little tribute to Dr. Fernandez Vina, I wanted to let you in on the basics of his stem cell treatment for the lungs (COPD and Emphysema). It is simple and effective- and of course since it is using the patient’s own adult stem cells, it is safe as well.

Process of Stem Cell Therapy for Lung Disease

The procedure to implant the patient’s own Adult Stem Cells into the lungs was conceived by Dr. Fernandez Vina and it consists of the following:

  1. Using a special needle designed by Dr. Vina, the needle is injected into the crest of the patient’s iliac bone and bone marrow is drawn out
  2. The aspirated bone marrow is then taken next door into the lab and put into a centrifuge.  The stem cells are separated, filtered (to remove some bone remains)
  3. 2-3 hours later, the stem cells are injected into the veins and go directly to the lungs.

What Do The Adult Stem Cells Do In the Lungs?

The lungs grab and keep the stem cells and the alveolus starts regenerating. What happens here is that dead cells in the alveolus of the lungs leave empty spaces or niches or little caves, into which the stem cells settle down and start growing, reproducing and rebuilding the alveolus.

The stem cells go to the lungs directly as all blood passes through the lungs before going to the heart, lungs are a sort of a trap and the stem cells stay there. Recovery does not happen immediately for obvious reasons, but it takes from 3 to 6 months, though the patient starts reducing his oxygen consumption as from the 4th week onwards. How much he can reduce his oxygen consumption depends on his actual condition, how his body may react and many other factors.

Sometimes, quite rare, a second implant is required about 6 to 12 months later, for reinforcement. If this would be the case, the Doctor does not charge any additional medical fees, just the out of pocket expenses coming with it, such as hospital, hotel accommodation, ground transportation and airfares.

That doesn’t sound like a bad deal at all.  In other words, if it doesn’t work, a patient can try again at minimal expense.

More On The Stem Cell Treatment For COPD and Emphysema

The patient is requested to arrive at one of the Treatment Centers which are controlled and supervised by Dr. Fernández Viña (Either Argentina or in El Salvador), one day prior treatment, for pre-treatment tests. The next day, the patient gets his stem cell treatment done and it is very probable he will be discharged from hospital on the same day or next morning, but he is requested to stay at a hotel nearby for observation purposes for 2 more days at least.

No Pain, No Gain With Adult Stem Cells

The patient normally does not have any pain during or after treatment, though if necessary he will get some analgesic, such as an Aspirin or Advil pill, that is all he will need. He will be at least in the same condition for traveling back as he was when he arrived. Afterwards, the patient will get his follow up by his regular attending physician, but the patient will always be able to keep in touch with Dr. Fernández Viña.

No Rejection, No Side Effects From Your Own Stem Cells

There is no rejection as the patient gets his own cells and there are no side effects, collateral effects nor consequences of the treatment. If some of the injected Stem Cells would escape from the lungs and go to some other organs, there is no harm, just the opposite- benefits for that organ!

If you are further interested in this Adult Stem Cell treatment, please go to our Repair Stem Cell Institute website and fill out this stem cell treatment request form and we will assist you in receiving more stem cell therapy information regarding Dr. Fernandez Vina.


June 29, 2009 | 11:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Diabetes Type 2 Helped By Adult Stem Cells In Research Study

Stem Cell Research Study Shows Adult Stem Cells Improve Diabetes Type 2

Dr. Roberto Fernandez Vina is scheduled to present a stem cell research study in which he helped improve Diabetes Type 2 patients with their own Adult Stem Cells and followed up on them for 3 years! The stem cell treatment and therapy was a great success. The results are below.

Stem Cell Pioneer and Doctor to Present Adult Stem Cell Study At ISSCR Meeting

Dr. Fernandez Vina will present the following abstract at the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) annual meeting in Barcelona in July 2009.  This is another milestone in Adult Stem Cell research as Dr. Fernandez-Vina has probably been the world’s foremost stem cell doctor in helping patients with their own stem cells.

FIRST REPORT FROM ARGENTINA OF FIRST THREE YEARS FOLLOW UP OF AUTOLOGOUS STEM CELLS IMPLANT IN DIABETES TYPE 2

Objectives: To evaluate the long time performance of Stem cells implant in pancreas in Diabetes Type 2 patients The adults stem cells CD34(+)CD38(-) have demonstrated the capacity to differentiate into functional cells in the endocrine pancreas.

Method: After three years on cell therapy for diabetes,patients the conclusions are optimistic. In this study were observed the evolution of 58 patients Diabetic type 2, 37 male, 21 female, 29- 71 years old. 29 patients were under insulin therapy, and 20 patients using Sulphonylureas + Biguanides. For the transplantation, we harvested bone marrow from the iliac crest by aspiration. The sample was processed using a density gradient separation method, obtaining 120ml (±95) of CD34(+)CD38(-) solution. For the implant was procedure a catheterization through Splenic Artery. No complications or further events were observed during or after the procedure. The patients were subjected to clinical and blood samples control during the 36 months following the implant.

Type 2 Patients

Before Implant

6 Months

36 Months

Results %

P values

C-Peptide Basal (ng/ml)

1.18

1.76

2.19

48.52%

P=0.036

C-Peptide after meal (ng/ml)

2.22

2.95

4.40

95.52%

HgbA1c

9.14

8.25

6.35

21.95%

P=0.003

Insulin Basal (MU/ml)

12.33

15.27

15.02

25.26%

P=0.016

Insulin After Meal (MU/ml)

19.11

26.23

34.7

58.75 %

Pills per day

2.25

1.55

0.33

44.36%

P=0.0007

Insulin Dosis (IU/day)

50.59

14.55

9.55

89.03%

P= 0.037

Conclusions: the implant of mononuclear CD34+CD38- ( stem cells) from autologous bone marrow improve pancreatic function in patients with type 2 diabetes, in a safe form and is maintained after 3 years at least

Stem Cell Treatment Now Available, But Not In the United States

Dr. Fernandez Vina from Argentina now is treating patients with their own stem cells in Argentina as well as El Salvador (a short flight from Houston) for conditions such as Spinal Cord Injury, Heart Disease, Lung Diseases (COPD and Emphysema) Diabetes Type 1 and Diabetes Type 2 as well as many other conditions.

If you are further interested in this Adult Stem Cell treatment, please go to our Repair Stem Cell Institute website and fill out this stem cell treatment request form and we will assist you in receiving more stem cell therapy information regarding Dr. Fernandez Vina


June 25, 2009 | 10:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Stem Cell Research Continues to Help Dilated Cardiomyopathy Patients

Stem Cell Research Now Helping Dilated Cardiomyopathy!

Stem Cell Research continues to show that Adult Stem Cells can help Dilated Cardiomyopathy patients. Before Adult Stem Cell treatment, there really was no treatment for cardiomyopathy, just a drug regimen to minimize the symptoms of the dreaded heart disease eventually resulting in congestive heart failure and then a heart transplant or death.

Adult Stem Cells Giving Hope

Adult Stem Cell research has given us new hope. Patients like Leonard Narracci are living examples of how this new stem cell therapy can help. Leonard previously wrote me and informed me of his stem cell treatment for his cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure on October 8th, 2008. He reported that 7 weeks after his treatment, his ejection fraction (a measure of the heart’s pumping ability) had gone from 18% all the way to 33%.  Not only that, he had  renewed energy and sense of well-being that he had not experienced in 3 years!

That was in December- 3 months after the stem cell research had worked its magic on Leonard.  Now, more than 6 months after the adult stem cells were implanted, Leonard has more good news.

6 Months After Stem Cell Treatment- Good News!

His ejection fraction has gone up from 18% before treatment to 51% 6 months post stem cell treatment.

From the stem cell press release:

It goes against traditional theory that we should try to fix damaged heart muscle, but we are generating new heart tissue with impressive results that improve cardiac function and quality of life,” said Dr. Leonel Fernandez Liriano, Professor of Medicine at Pontifical Catholic University School of Medicine (PCUSM), and the head of the cardiology team that treated the patient with adult stem cells.

Grekos states, “After comparing this patient’s echocardiogram and MUGA nuclear scans before and after treatment, we are very pleased to see a profound increase in cardiac function.”

More on Stem Cell Research for Dilated Cardiomyopathy

Good to hear from Leonard again.  We also covered 2 other dilated cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure patients who are doing well after adult stem cell therapy- Mike Rumble and Dan Jackson.


June 23, 2009 | 11:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Aussie Girl With Cerebral Palsy Helped by Adult Stem Cells- To Go For 2nd Stem Cell Treatment

Cerebral Palsy Stem Cell Treatment for the 2nd time!

Sierra Rose Hill, a young girl from Australia with cerebral palsy who was already helped by Adult Stem Cells is off again to Germany for a 2nd stem cell treatment.  Sierra went to Germany in December, 2008 for the therapy with her own stem cells and it paid big dividends.  We first covered Sierra here in this stem cell post in March

Adult Stem Cells Successful First Time- Now Going for Two!

As a result of the first stem cell treatment, Sierra got “looser” in her limbs, more flexibility and a better ability to control her tongue. Sierra responded so well to her own Adult Stem Cells that her parents have now raised enough money to return to Germany for more stem cell therapy.

Stem Cell Research Documentary

Sierra and her parents are leaving for Germany on June 25th for the treatment. However, this time, they will have company. Pia Niebel is producing a documentary called ‘Little Mountains’ about Sierra and in Pia’s words:

‘Little Mountains’ is an intimate portrayal of an Australian family’s struggle with cerebral palsy and the risks and choices associated with emerging stem cell technologies. It is a character driven documentary that enquires about the current status of adult stem cell treatment and why it is not available in Australia.

Adult Stem Cells Available to Help In Australia? No

I often moan on how adult stem cells are not available in the United States.  However, of course, there are people everywhere who have diseases and conditions that adult stem cells could help.  There is no reason why Australia shouldn’t be making a person’s own stem cells available for treatment as well.

And as Sierra’s father said once  “If that (stem cell treatment) was available in Australia, at an affordable price, if it was at a hospital from a professional service, that could make such a huge difference to people with cerebral palsy and various other conditions,” he said. “I know they want to do their clinical trials. But they are providing this service already around the world. I would like to see it here.”

Pia is looking for funding to help her produce this Adult Stem Cell research documentary which would be a nice step in the right direction in getting Adult Stem Cell treatment approved in Australia.  If you would like to help Pia get the word out, you can contact her here:

Pia Niebel
LIGHT PUZZLE MEDIA
Creative Producer
mobile +61 (0)4 388 77 183
Email: happy@pia.net.au

Here is a preview of Pia’s stem cell research documentary featuring the lovely Sierra and her parents:


June 22, 2009 | 12:06 PM Comments  0 comments

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Can Stem Cell Research Really Defeat the 1927 Yankees and Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS)

Stem Cell Research Shown To Improve ALS

In a recent published clinical stem cell research study, adult stem cells were shown to help delay Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) progression and improve an ALS patient’s quality of life. This research study was believed to be the first published study comparing ALS patients who had their own stem cells injected into their brain vs a control group.

Thank you very much to ALS Worldwide for providing us with this exciting stem cell research breakthrough in humans- not mice! Any clinical studies like this in the United States? I can’t hear you….

Without further ado- here is the published stem cell research study on ALS.

Summary of Adult Stem Cell Therapy for ALS Study

This summary is provided by the good people at ALS Worldwide as well as they went to observe this tremendous stem cell treatment using Adult Stem Cells!

HOSPITAL SAN JOSE TECNOLOGICO DE MONTERREY STEM CELL PROCEDURE

The initial two year clinical test study results of the stem cell procedure instituted by Hospital San Jose Tecnologico de Monterrey, was published in Cytotherapy, February, 2009. Positive results were confirmed through both clinical observation and MRI tractography. It is considered by many within the international neurological community to be the foremost procedure available for minimizing or abrogating ALS symptoms and extending the lifespan of ALS patients. The procedure is a state of the art use of autologous CD-133 (+) stem cells injected into the frontal cortices for the effective replacement of motor neurons.

Representing the ALS WORLDWIDE patient community, we were at Hospital San Jose Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mexico from June 6-14 to observe the hospitalization and procedures for the first two international patients being provided this stem cell therapy. In a sentence, the official message delivered is clear: “This stem cell procedure is not a cure. We offer nothing more than the promise of stability and extended life expectancy. The opportunity, however, exists for improvement. “

Process of Stem Cells for Lou Gehrig’s Disease

The stem cell preparation procedure is sophisticated and complicated but in the simplest terms, the patient’s blood is purified, extracted and cleansed. Stem cells are extracted and then the one kind of stem cell that can be best coaxed into becoming a neuron is injected into two places in the brain. The patient experiences no pain and very little discomfort during the procedure. A mild sedative is provided and within hours, the patient is back in his or her room, enjoying dinner.

The team effort at Hospital San Jose Tecnologico de Monterrey embraces a cooperative spirit that pervades every aspect of their efforts. Patients and their families are treated with the highest level of concern, respect and support. The hospital itself resembles the finest hotel and provides exemplary care. A more detailed, scientific explanation of the Monterrey experience is currently being prepared and will be posted to ALS WORLDWIDE within the next week.

I hope to post these updates on this breakthrough in stem cell research as well.


June 18, 2009 | 8:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Adult Stem Cell Research Helps Congestive Heart Failure Patient

Stem Cell Research Heals Heart Muscle After Heart Attack

Another congestive heart failure patient has been helped by stem cell research using adult stem cells. Terry Areford, 62, a multiple heart attack victim has been given a 2nd chance at life after receiving Vescell stem cell treatment to heal his heart muscle in Thailand.

Congestive Heart Failure Symptoms

Terry was dying. He was slowing down. He had the usual symptoms of congestive heart failure. He had shortness of breath. He could barely walk 50 feet slowly. However, Terry still had hope. His daughter came across the Vescell website and contacted them.

Adult Stem Cells From Your Own Blood

For those of you unfamiliar with Vescell stem cell therapy in Thailand, it is a process created by a company called Theravitae in which adult stem cells are removed from the patient’s blood (similar to a blood donation) and then multiplied into a therapeutic dose and then implanted into the patient’s heart muscle and/or coronary arteries.

But back to Terry’s stem cell story-

Before Vescell Treatment

  • Ejection Fraction 10%
  • Could barely walk
  • Severe shortness of breath

After Adult Stem Cells Implanted

  • Ejection Fraction at 45%
  • Plays 3 rounds of golf per week
  • No shortness of breath- outside chopping firewood

3 full 18 hole rounds of golf per week? No kidding Terry?  I am very happy for you.   Like many of the Vescell heart patients recently, Terry has become an adult stem cell advocate and wants other congestive heart failure patients to know that there is still hope out there.

You are welcome to call or email Terry  at 304-594-9377 or his email is bkareford@msn.com

Stem Cell Research in Thailand

This is the third stem cell research success story to come out of Thailand in the last month. See stories from heart attack victims and heart failure patients James Eilert and Andy Jordan as well.   Is anyone in the FDA paying attention to this?  Adult Stem Cells can be used now to help these heart patients with no side effects!  Why do they have to leave the United States for it?


June 17, 2009 | 9:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Iraq Ahead of US in Stem Cell Research and Treatment

While America continues to waste put its money into Embryonic Stem Cell research, a doctor in Iraq is actually treating patients with their own Adult Stem Cells.   Dr. Abdul Majeed Alwan Hammadi is treating patients for free- and has so far treated 34 patients with stem cell therapy and treatment, mainly patients with Multiple Sclerosis.

Dr. Hammadi claims no side effects have been reported in his patients and this isn’t surprising because it is the patient’s own stem cells he is using.

We covered Dr. Hammadi briefly last month when he was treating  Reverend Andrew White, the vicar for St. George’s church in Baghdad.  Reverend Andrew was suffering from multiple sclerosis before his stem cell treatment.

Reverend Andrew had no qualms about using his own Adult Stem Cells for his treatment because they were cells from his own body, already designed to repair damage.

Dr. Hammadi started treating Reverend Andrew in January 2009.  Since then (from the stem cell article):

White said his slurred speech and other MS symptoms improved since starting the three-hour therapy sessions, which involves Hammadi extracting adult stem cells from White’s blood and then injecting them into his spinal cord.

When there’s no other treatment, you kind of just go with it,” White said. “At least there’s a chance.”

White said the therapy itself “can be a bit painful” since it involves a spinal cord puncture, but there has been a “massive difference” in his condition.

“It’s very rare for me to actually feel ill now,” he said. “My balance is still quite bad and my vision is not perfect, but I do not feel ill.”

Look at this.  In the middle of a warzone, a doctor is treating patients with their own Adult Stem Cells for free.  While in the peaceful United States, too busy with their Embryonic stem cell research, multiple sclerosis patients wait (and suffer) for the right to use their own stem cells for treatment. Is there something wrong with this picture?


June 15, 2009 | 11:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Adult Stem Cell Treatment Helps Patient With Spinal Cord Injury From A Car Accident

Stem Cell Treatment Helps Spinal Cord Injury

Due to the wonders of Adult Stem Cell treatment, yet another spinal cord injury patient has improved his quality of life.  A young man in India who had lost all sensations from a car accident has been helped after receiving his own Adult Stem Cells and having them injected into his spinal cord where the injury occurred (C3-c4).

Before the Stem Cell Therapy

  • Loss of bladder function and control
  • Weakness in all both legs and arms
  • Loss of feeling and sensations

After the Adult Stem Cell Therapy

  • Regained bladder function- doesn’t need urinary catheter anymore
  • Getting Stronger in all limbs
  • Return of more feelings and sensations

Process of Stem Cells for Spinal Cord Injury

  1. Bone Marrow taken from the hip
  2. 6 weeks of cultivating the adult stem cells to increase total to 100 million +
  3. Adult Stem Cells injected at injury site (C3-C4) in a surgical procedure

Dr. K Eliyas Basha of Salem Manipal Hospital in India was the stem cell doctor responsible for this success story.  He contacted various stem cell treatment centers around the world and exchanged ideas and techniques.

From the stem cell article:

“We have been screening and interacting with stem cell centres around the world to know further details regarding stem cell therapy directly at the C3- C4 cervical cord injury. The whole procedure was thoroughly studied and scrutinized by various committees of Manipal health systems,” Dr. Basha said.

Perhaps he consulted with this group in Ecuador- see this amazing stem cell for spinal cord injury video

While obviously not a cure, this stem cell therapy and treatment has   helped improve this young man’s life.  That is what Adult Stem Cells do- they repair damage and improve lives with no side effects.

What if we gave every spinal cord injury patient in the United States this stem cell treatment using their own repair stem cells?  Don’t you think that would help improve thousands of lives?

I do.   We have enough proof- it is safe and helps in most cases. Let’s make Adult Stem Cells available for treatment now!


June 12, 2009 | 11:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Stem Cell Awareness Rally - USA Not #1 in Helping Patients

Adult Stem Cell Group Having A Rally

A group of patients who have been helped by stem cell research using Adult Stem Cells have formed a group called the Stem Cell Awareness Association.  This group is growing fast with prospective stem cell patients and even US doctors joining the movement.   They will be holding a Stem Cell Awareness rally this Saturday, June 13th, 2009 in Denver.

Making Others Aware of the Benefits of Adult Stem Cells

The Stem Cell Awareness Association was formed by Carol Peterson.  Carol is the grandmother of Cameron Peterson, a young toddler who was blind from Optic Nerve Hypoplasia, but now can see thanks to stem cell therapy in China using Adult Stem Cells from cord blood.

Educated Freedom of Choice

Carol says the mission of the Stem Cell Awareness Association can be summarized  in four simple words, “Educated Freedom of Choice.

“Our group is mainly made up of patients who have experienced what is really available in other countries and while we don’t want to exert influence over other patients’ decisions, we do want to make them aware that what is available in the U.S. is not representative of what is available throughout the world.”

US Medical Establishment Protecting Patients Or Are They More Worried About Lawsuits and Reputations?

David Aldrich, a spinal cord injury patient who has improved tremendously after his stem cell treatments in China also weighs in on the topic-

“I am worn out from dealing with a medical establishment that does not provide me with the best treatment available and oftentimes tries to stop people like me from seeking treatment abroad under the guise of protecting me,” said Aldrich. “My short-term goal is to let people know that there is help available, no matter what your physician says. But my real goal is focused on bringing people together to figure out what can be done so I don’t have to go abroad for my next treatment.

If you guessed that David was referring to the American medical establishment not providing him with the best treatment available,  you would be correct.

Too Much Focus On Stem Cell Research and Not Enough Focus On Helping Patients Now With Adult Stem Cells?

While America focuses on “research” using billions of taxpayer dollars, other countries are using Adult Stem Cells now and actually helping patients improve their lives.

For example, take Shel Morse, the mother of Macie Morse, who was legally blind from her optic nerve hypoplasia, but CAN NOW DRIVE!  after receiving adult stem cell therapy in China, she has her say -

“Macie’s journey to stem cells started when she turned 15 and asked for a driving permit. It wasn’t even an option with her current vision, not to mention the fact a vision teacher of hers had stated it was never going to be possible and we should just face reality. At that point I knew that it was my mission to let people know that they don’t necessarily have to live with the diagnosis their local doctors give them.

“Macie’s doctors not only criticized the companies we told them about but actively discouraged us from help overseas - help that they could not offer. The reason why I got behind this organization and decided to set up this event in Denver is because the patients need to join together to have a voice. Our medical society needs to get serious about real health care; we cannot rely on our current system - it is broken. U.S. doctors and scientists need to focus on doing what is necessary to help patients instead of their reputations and how they can make money.”

What else can I say?  Carol, David and Shel said it perfectly.    See the full stem cell press release here

If you are in the Denver area on Saturday, go check them out, you may learn something and for sure you will meet some brave individuals-

All patients who are considering stem cell treatments or have already had stem cell treatments are welcome to join the next Stem Cell Awareness Rally:

    Location: Denver, Colorado
    Place: Stella's Coffee House
    Date: June 13th, 2009
    Time: 2 pm

June 11, 2009 | 11:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Adult Stem Cell Research- Now Helping Traumatic Brain Injury

Stem Cell Research Doctor Helps Woman With Brain Injury

In another victory for stem cell research using Adult Stem Cells, a woman in India is recovering from a traumatic brain injury suffered in a car accident.  Madhumalika, 27,  had her own adult stem cells implanted into her brain for the therapy and treatment.

In a Coma, Nothing to Lose- Her Own Adult Stem Cells To The Rescue

Madhumalika had been in a coma for more than 3 months.  Her family had given up hope.  Her father said “”We had no hope of getting her back after the fatal injury. Also, we were unsure of the effects of the therapy on her. But we had to take a chance.”

With the help of Dr. N K Venkataramana, chief neurosurgeon of BGS Hospitals,Madumalika had the stem cells from her bone marrow put into her brain.  The results?

From the stem cell article:

In the surgery done in March, four million stem cells per body weight, which were prepared at Stempeutics Research Pvt Ltd, were injected directly into her brain.

After a month of the transplant, she showed considerable improvement. She became conscious, started talking and could move her limbs. She was also able to recognize family members and friends.

Dr. N K Venkatarmana - Can you say the name of this stem cell doctor 3 times fast?

As noted above, the stem cell research and treatment was carried out by Dr. N K Venkataramana.  One doesn’t easily forget a name like that.  Dr. Venkataramana was the same doctor (neurosurgeon) who helped Aaditya, the lovely young boy suffering from  Niemann Pick Type C, with Aaditya’s own stem cells.    You can read more about Aaditya’s stem cell treatment at his own web site set up by his family Hope for Aaditya

This all leads back to “Why isn’t this available in the United States?”-  Treatment with your own stem cells - not as a cure, but as a beneficial treatment that should be done especially when the patient has nothing to lose such as in this case.  By not being able to use our own stem cells as a therapy, it  is causing unnecessary deaths and unnecessary suffering each day we delay.


June 10, 2009 | 6:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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Stem Cell Research- Now Helping Autism With Adult Stem Cells

Stem Cell Research Helps Girl With Autism

A woman from New York has written an open letter to Obama saying that stem cell research using Adult Stem Cells has helped her daughter’s autism. Judy DiCorcia is reporting that her daughter, Lauren, a 10 year old girl with autism has improved significantly after the stem cell treatment and therapy in Germany in January 2009.

Process of Stem Cell Research and Therapy for Autism

  1. Bone Marrow Extracted From Patient
  2. Using a centrifuge, stem cells are separated from the bone marrow
  3. Implanted into spinal canal via lumbar puncture- a simple procedure

As easy as 1,2, 3!

Improvements in Lauren After Stem Cell Treatment

  • Can sleep through the night for the first time
  • Less Frustrated
  • Better focused, more compliant
  • Moms says a “40% general improvement which is huge for an autistic child”

From the stem cell article:

Now, more than five months since her treatment, Mrs. DiCorcia reports that her daughter is still doing well, “Lauren is doing well. I would have to say that she ‘plateaued’ at about the 12-week mark. Her situation is stable and fortunately all positive effects have persisted. I wish the doctor could fly to the US and perform the therapy here!”

I wish they could perform the procedure here too Mrs. DiCorcia.   Again, nobody is saying the stem cell therapy has cured Lauren.  But the improvement in the quality of life is what is most important.  And Lauren’s mom says the improvement was 40%- in a simple procedure.

Now, Lauren had nothing to lose, the research has been done-  the procedure used her own Adult Stem Cells so was perfectly safe.   And it paid off for the family.

Here is the full letter from Lauren’s mother addressed to Obama-

Dear President Obama,

I am the mother of a 10-year-old autistic daughter. In January, we took Lauren to Cologne, Germany for Adult Stem Cell therapy. The center used her own stem cells drawn from her hip bone marrow, centrifuged the next day, and then reinserted via lumbar puncture the following day (2.95 million cells). Both procedures were quick and not invasive at all. In the past 6 weeks we have seen significant improvements in our daughter’s behaviors, focus, hyperactivity, and insomnia. I would rate a general improvement of about 40% - this is HUGE for a family living with autism. Our daughter started sleeping through the night for the first time (yes, she is 10 and got up every night) since stem cells. Lauren is happier just in her own skin - so much less frustrated and just generally happier. She is getting through her one-on-one therapy more quickly, better focused, and more compliant. Of course, it amazes me that this simple, non-controversial therapy cannot be done here in the United States.

Sincerely,
Judy DiCorcia

It amazes me too Judy.  You should send your letter to the FDA as well.

We have previously reported  on autism with Matthew Faiella who has also improved due to stem cell research after adult stem cell treatment in Costa Rica.  Here is more on Matthew and how stem cells have helped his autism


June 8, 2009 | 12:06 PM Comments  0 comments

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ယခုႏွစ္ ကရင္နီျပည္တြင္ ၀မ္းပ်က္၀မ္းေလွ်ာ အျဖစ္မ်ား
Related to country: Myanmar

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic


မုိးဦးက်ရာသီ အေျပာင္းအလဲျဖစ္သည့္ ယခုအခ်ိန္မ်ားတြင္ ကရင္နီျပည္မွာရွိေသာ ေက်းလက္ေဒသမ်ားသည္ ဝမ္းပ်က္ဝမ္းေလွ်ာေရာဂါ ျဖစ္ေလ့ရွိၿပီး ယခုႏွစ္တြင္ အရင္ႏွစ္ထက္ ပိုမုိဆုိးရြားေနသည္ဟု သတင္းရရွိပါသည္။
ဖရူၿမိဳ႕နယ္ႏွင့္ ဒီေမာဆိုၿမိဳ႕နယ္ ေက်းရြာအုပ္စုမ်ားမွာ အျဖစ္မ်ားၿပီး တအုပ္စုမွာ ခန္႕မွန္ေျခ ကေလးလူႀကီး ၁၀ဦးေက်ာ္ေလာက္ ေသဆံုးသည္ကို ေတြ႕ရွိရပါသည္ဟု သြားေရာက္ကုသေပးေနေသာ ေဆးမွဴးတဦးက ေျပာပါသည္။
“ဒီဝမ္းပ်က္ ဝမ္းေလွ်ာ ျဖစ္ပြားတာ အရမ္းကို ကူးစက္ျမန္ပါတယ္၊ က်ေတာ္တို႕ တရြာကုိ ေဆးကုလုိ႕ ေဆးေပး လမ္းညြန္မႈေတြ လုပ္ေပးလုိ႕ မၿပီးခင္မွာပဲ ေနာက္တရြာက ဝမ္းေလွ်ာလုိ႕ ေသရျပန္ၿပီး အခ်ိန္မီ ေဆးကုသခြင့္ ေတာင္မရလုိက္ၾကပါဘူး” ဟုေျပာသြားပါသည္။
ယခုလုိ ဝမ္းပ်က္ဝမ္းေလွ်ာေရာဂါ ျဖစ္ရသည့္ အဓိက အေၾကာင္းရင္းမွာ အမွည့္လြန္သစ္သီးမ်ား စားသံုးသည့္ အျပင္ ေဆးဆရာ၊မ မလံုေလာက္ျခင္း၊ က်န္းမာေရးပညာေပးမႈအားနည္းျခင္းႏွင့္ ေဆးဝါးမလံုေလာက္သည့္ အတြက္ေၾကာင့္ ျဖစ္ရပါသည္။
ဖရူဆုိၿမိဳ႕နယ္အတြင္းတြင္ ေက်းရြာအုပ္စုေပါင္း ၁၄ အုပ္စုရွိၿပီး၊ ဒီေမာဆုိၿမိဳ႕တြင္ ေက်းရြာအုပ္စု ၂၆ အုပ္စုရွိၿပီး ဝမ္းပ်က္ဝမ္းေလွ်ာ ေရာဂါအျပင္ ငွက္ဖ်ားေရာဂါလည္း အျဖစ္မ်ားသည္ဟု သိရွိရပါသည္။


June 7, 2009 | 10:45 PM Comments  0 comments

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Stem Cell Research Offers Patients Improvements In Quality of Life

Research on Stem Cell Treatments Abroad

If you have done any research on stem cell treatments abroad, you will undoubtedly read negative articles like this one on CNN from the mainstream media saying these companies are promising cures and are preying on the desperate, that these companies are selling “snake oil”   Nothing could be further from the truth.

The stem cell companies and stem cell doctors that are part of the Repair Stem Cell Institute offer patients a good chance at an improvement in the patient’s quality of life- they don’t offer nor promise cures.  Patients going to these stem cell therapy treatment centers abroad know this.

Unfortunately, the United States and their FDA don’t give these patients any other options.  Are they able to use their own stem cells to help their multiple sclerosis or heart disease-  Stem Cells that have been proven safe in thousands of studies? No.  What is one to do then?  These patients must go abroad for the only treatment that can help their disease or condition.

Here is a sampling of what some of these companies  affiliated with the Repair Stem Cell Institute tell their patients:

From Stem Cells China:

It’s not a cure. It’s about quality of life. Every day I see inquiries begin like this: “Can stem cells cure…?” Everyone should know the answer to that one right away. No. No known therapy utilizing stem cells can cure any medical condition. Not one.

A cure would rewrite the broken code of your genome. A cure would rewind the debilitating progression of a neuro-degenerative disease to the moment before onset. A cure would fix all the wrongs of a baby’s challenged birth. We eagerly await the development of cures and their accessibility to patients in need.

So why are people receiving stem cell therapy today? Therapies involving adult stem cells today are providing quality of life improvements for many patients. It’s no cure. Just as painkillers are not a cure for pain. They improve our quality of life if we feel pain.

But who would deny that painkillers are still worthwhile for extreme pain? Many doctors in the West are saying that they don’t have enough proof that stem cells are improving quality of life for patients. In the meantime, patients are busy coming to China and China’s stem cell clinics are busy offering the chance for quality of life improvements where none else would exist. We encourage you to explore the therapies being offered today.

From Dr. Shimon Slavin, Israel, helping people like Louis Zylstra and Arndt Roehlig

However, we have some positive and most encouraging evidence that the cells we inject may be of benefit, especially as evidenced in some patients with multiple sclerosis as well as based on the first patient we treated with spinal injury that seemed to have somewhat improved. The good news is that there are no side effects at all so there is no risk and nothing to lose (except money…). I would like to stress that since we are in very early stages of our research, nothing can be said about the clinical efficacy of our approach.  However, on the other hand, I do understand that patients in need cannot wait for all the answers to be solved and this is why we agree to offer experimental procedures for patients that understand the experimental nature of our program and consent to try and explore new treatment options.

From Dr. Roberto Fernandez Vina– For doctors who say that current stem cell therapies are “unproven,” Dr. Fernandez Viña has the following response:

How many patients must to be treated to say this is a cure? How many patients must die waiting for the word “cure?”

A lot of diseases are not totally cured with drugs but the laboratories talk about curing (HIV, Tuberculosis and a lot of malignant deseases). They say that the drugs “cure” but in reality the drugs improve the quality of life. Stem cells “cure” in the same sense. If a person is dying of diabetes and we improve the prognosis and he no longer needs insulin injections, we increase the C peptide, decrease the HbA1c, decrease protein in the urine, decrease the risk of amputation or kidney failure, in my book that is a “cure.”

From Richard Humphries, with multiple sclerosis and a stem cell recipient from Cell Medicine in Costa Rica:

I’m case study #1 in the paper (Multiple Sclerosis Study) just released and have had two stem cell treatments in Costa Rica where they promise nothing but deliver wonderful results. Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis patients can’t wait on historical data. Time is not on our side but stem cells improved my quality of life and the follow up MRI looks excellent.

From the X cell Center in Germany:

Even if not all of the interactions have been conclusively researched to date, the status of the current medical insights has indeed reached a level that allows the non- hazardous treatment with adult stem cells and puts medical professionals in a position to assume responsibility for its use.

Given the proven treatment success of regenerative medicine, the question of whether more research is needed prior to therapeutic use has already been answered.

Those who nevertheless demand stem cell therapy be postponed until we know more about it are taking away patients’ rights to make their own decisions as they search for medical solutions – for the kind of help stem cell therapy does offer.


June 5, 2009 | 8:06 AM Comments  0 comments

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