Cancer survivor to run London Marathon with his life-saver

11:00am Saturday 12th April 2014 in News

A BONE marrow donor will run Sundays London Marathon with the man whose life he saved.

Sean Hagan, 23, donated his stem cells after being inspired by Ulverston teenager Alice Pyne, who put it at the top of her bucket list before her tragic death from cancer in 2013.

The Askam-in-Furness mans donation saved the life of father-of-two Johnny Pearson, 44, from North Yorkshire, after he was diagnosed with leukaemia for the second time in just 18 months.

Sean, whose stem cell donation was undertaken by the Anthony Nolan charity, said: I remember being amazed at how simple it was. I hope Alice Pynes parents will see this and know what a special daughter they had. She was the reason I joined the Anthony Nolan register in the first place.

"Saving Johnnys life is the best thing Ive ever done and its the best thing Ill ever do.

The two men were allowed to write to each other anonymously and shared a series of emotional letters in which Johnny told Sean he wanted to shake his hand and show him what his donation means to his wife, children and friends.

They subsequently arranged to run the London Marathon together on Sunday.

Anthony Nolan, a charity that has been matching donors to recipients for 40 years, arranged for the pair to meet up for a training session before they undertake the 26.2 mile slog through the capital.

Read the original here:
Cancer survivor to run London Marathon with his life-saver

Brenda Goodman HealthDay Reporter Posted: Monday, April 7, 2014, 4:00 PM

MONDAY, April 7, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- In an early test, researchers report they've safely injected stem cells into the brains of 18 patients who had suffered strokes. And two of the patients showed significant improvement.

All the patients saw some improvement in weakness or paralysis within six months of their procedures. Although three people developed complications related to the surgery, they all recovered. There were no adverse reactions to the transplanted stem cells themselves, the study authors said.

What's more, the researchers said, two patients experienced dramatic recoveries almost immediately after the treatments.

Those patients, who were both women, started to regain the ability to talk and walk the morning after their operations. In both cases, they were more than two years past their strokes, a point where doctors wouldn't have expected further recovery.

The results have encouraged researchers to plan larger and longer tests of the procedure, which uses stem cells cultured from donated bone marrow.

An expert who was not involved in the research called it a promising first step.

"It's a small, early human study. It takes multiple steps to get to something clinically useful, and this is a nice, early step," said Dr. Steven Cramer, clinical director of the Stem Cell Research Center at the University of California, Irvine.

The findings were to be presented Monday at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons annual meeting, in San Francisco. The results of studies presented at meetings are considered preliminary until they've been published in peer-reviewed medical journals.

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Stem Cells Show Promise for Stroke Recovery

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

8-Apr-2014

Contact: Vanessa Wasta wasta@jhmi.edu 410-614-2916 Johns Hopkins Medicine

Research in mice and human cell lines has identified an experimental compound dubbed TTT-3002 as potentially one of the most potent drugs available to block genetic mutations in cancer cells blamed for some forms of treatment-resistant leukemia.

Results of the research by Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center investigators, described March 6 in the journal Blood, show that two doses a day of TTT-3002 eliminated leukemia cells in a group of mice within 10 days. The treatment performed as well as or better than similar drugs in head-to-head comparisons.

More than 35 percent of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients harbor a mutation in the gene FMS-like tyrosine kinase-3 (FLT3). Normal FLT3 genes produce an enzyme that signals bone marrow stem cells to divide and replenish. But when FLT3 is mutated in some AML patients, the enzyme stays on permanently, causing rapid growth of leukemia cells and making the condition likely to relapse after treatment.

Many investigators are developing and testing drugs designed to block the FLT3 enzyme's proliferation, several of which are now in clinical trials. So far, their effectiveness has been limited, according to Donald Small, M.D., Ph.D., the Kyle Haydock Professor of Oncology and director of pediatric oncology at Johns Hopkins. Small led a team of researchers who originally cloned the FLT3 gene and linked it to leukemia a decade ago.

"We're very excited about TTT-3002, because it appears in our tests so far to be the most potent FLT3 inhibitor to date," says Small. "It showed activity against FLT3-mutated cells taken from patients and with minimal toxicity to normal bone marrow cells, making it a promising new candidate for the treatment of AML."

In a series of experiments with the drug, Small, postdoctoral fellow Hayley Ma, Ph.D., and others found that the amount of TTT-3002 needed to block FLT3 activity in human leukemia cell lines was six- to sevenfold lower than for the most potent inhibitor currently in clinical trials. TTT-3002 also inhibited proteins made by genes further down the FLT3 signaling pathway, including STAT5, AKT and MAPK, and showed activity against the most frequently occurring FLT3 mutations, FLT3/ITD and FLT3/D835Y. Many cancer drugs are currently ineffective against FLT3/D835Y mutations.

When the Johns Hopkins team tested the drug in a mouse model of leukemia, they found that it not only eliminated the presence of leukemic cells within 10 days of treatment but also that the mice lived an average of more than 100 days following treatment, to study completion, and resumed normal bone marrow activity. By contrast, mice treated with a placebo died an average of 18 days following treatment.

See the original post here:
Experimental drug shows promise for treatment-resistant leukemias

A Calgary blood and marrow transplant doctor says hes looking forward to the establishment of a national cord blood bank, which will provide stem cells for procedures at two city hospitals once its fully up and running later this year.

The National Cord Blood Bank, run by Canadian Blood Services, is set to become the first public cord blood bank in the country, with hospitals in Edmonton, Ottawa, Vancouver and Brampton designated as collection sites.

Dr. Victor Lewis, a pediatric oncologist at the Alberta Childrens Hospital, said the stem cells collected from cord blood can make a huge difference for patients by increasing the inventory doctors can search to find donors.

Theres a good chance we may find donors for Canadian children in the Canadian cord bank, he said, noting cord blood stem cells are biologically younger and considered more flexible for treatment options compared to adult cells.

Umbilical cord blood is a sought-after source for stem cells since the match doesnt have to be as precise for the young cells, compared with bone marrow sources, said Heidi Elmaoazzen, director of the national public cord blood bank.

Until the first phase of the project opened in Ottawa last year, umbilical cords were considered medical waste, said Elmaoazzen, speaking to a Calgary Herald editorial board meeting.

The national centre will now cryopreserve the material collected from the four donor hospitals and store it indefinitely for use treating diseases such as leukemia and lymphoma.

In Calgary, it will allow physicians to perform stem cell transplants at the Alberta Childrens Hospital and Tom Baker Cancer Centre.

The agency has raised about $7.8 million of its $12.5-million fundraising goal for the project, said campaign co-chair Dale Sheard.

The rest of the funds for the $48-million blood bank are set to come from provincial and territorial governments, apart from Quebec.

Read the original post:
Calgary childrens hospital eager for access to national cord blood bank

By Estel Grace Masangkay

CardioCell LLC announced that it has received FDA approval for its investigational new drug (IND) application for a U.S.-based Phase IIA clinical study evaluating its allogeneic stem-cell therapy for patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).

Dr. Sergey Sikora, CardioCells president and CEO, said, With the FDAs IND approval, CardioCell is pleased to proceed with a Phase 2a CHF clinical trial based on the safety data reported in previous clinical trials using our unique, hypoxically grown stem cells. At the studys conclusion we will understand if our therapy produces signs of improvement in a population of patients with dilated CHF, a condition largely unaddressed by current therapies. Dilated CHF is characterized by a viable but non-functioning myocardium in which cardiomyocytes are alive but are not contracting as they should. We hope that unique properties of our itMSCs will transition patients cardiomyocytes from viable to functioning, eventually improving or restoring heart function.

The company has developed an ischemic tolerant mesenchymal stem cells (itMSC) treatment for the type of dilated CHF that is not related to coronary artery disease. The treatment could potentially apply to about 35 percent of CHF patients. Only CardioCells CHF therapies feature itMSCs, exclusively licensed from CardioCells parent company Stemedica Cell Technologies Inc. The company said Stemedicas bone marrow-derived, allogeneic MSCs are different from other MSCs because they are grown under hypoxic conditions that closely resemble the environment in which they thrive on in the body.

Dr. Stephen Epstein, CardioCells Scientific Advisory Board Chair, said Although past trials have tested the efficacy of different stem cells in patients with DCM, CardioCells itMSCs, grown under chronic hypoxic conditions, are unique. As compared to stem cells grown under normoxic conditions, they express higher levels of factors that could exert beneficial effects on the mechanisms contributing to myocardial dysfunction and disease progression. This study, therefore, provides an exciting opportunity to test the potential of these itMSCs to attenuate or eliminate these mechanisms and, in so doing, improve patient outcomes.

The trial entitled A Phase 2a, Single-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover, Multi-Center, Randomized Study to Assess the Safety, Tolerability, and Preliminary Efficacy of a Single Intravenous Dose of Ischemia-Tolerant Allogeneic Mesenchymal Bone Marrow Cells to Subjects With Heart Failure of Non-Ischemic Etiology, will be conducted at Emory University, Northwestern University, and the University of Pennsylvania in May this year.

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FDA Approves CardioCell's Phase 2A Trial For CHF Stem Cell Therapy

Bone marrow stem cells needed

By: RBCLife Malaysia

Read the original post:
Bone marrow stem cells needed - Video

I found the whole process fascinating and rewarding, and when Alison contacted me to tell me that the first couple Id donated to hadnt eventually conceived, she also told me she was setting up Altrui, and I got involved. Its an amazing thing to be a part of. I wouldnt donate again, as Im focusing on my own family now, but I love supporting other donors with their journeys.

I told Lyndon about it all not long after we met, but there was never a problem he has two children from a previous relationship so we both come with a past. Having my daughter has just confirmed how precious my eggs must have been to the couples whose lives I have changed. Im sure that when she is able to understand what Ive done she will be proud of her mum.

Alan Fisher 35, is a data analyst and lives in Nottingham with his girlfriend, Cat. He joined the UKs blood cancer charity and bone marrow register, Anthony Nolan (anthonynolan.org), in 2010 and donated bone marrow at the London Clinic in January

It was a memorable drive to work the day I decided to donate. I tuned into the local radio station to hear a six-year-old boy hosting the breakfast show: he had leukaemia and was raising awareness for the Anthony Nolan register. It was amazing to hear a young, confident voice doing such a brave thing, and I pulled into the office car park feeling uplifted. But as I reached down to turn off the engine the show ended, and I heard the usual presenter explaining that it had been a tribute to the boy, who had died because a donor hadnt been found in time. There and then I knew I would sign up.

I went along to a Join for Joel event organised in memory of the boy, Joel Picker Spence. It was easy: all I had to do was give a saliva sample. Knowing I could be called to donate within months, years or never, I didnt think about it much after that.

A year and a half later I was contacted and told there was a potential recipient for my bone marrow, but after more tests it transpired that they didnt need me. It was a bit of an anticlimax, to be honest. But in 2013, just before Christmas, I got another phone call and recognised the number on my phone. Its my turn now, I thought.

My employers were great about me taking time off. The hospital wanted to take bone marrow under general anaesthetic from my pelvic bone. It seems like the more invasive option you can sometimes give by a stem cell blood donation but as I dont like needles I didnt mind the idea of being knocked out.

The procedure itself went fine: I spent the night before at hospital and was taken to theatre early. When I awoke after the operation, which took less than an hour, I actually thought it hadnt happened. I was left feeling drained, but only for a few days. I also had two small puncture wounds in the small of my back, but they healed nicely. For me, it was a minor inconvenience for the recipient and their family, I hope it has meant a lot more. I found out afterwards that the amount of bone marrow needed indicated that the recipient was a child. Before I was discharged, I also found out it was a young boy, about the same age as Joel.

Jay Kelly 36, is a fertility and birth hypnotherapist. She is divorced and lives in Harrogate with her four daughters, aged 13, 10 and seven (twins). She recently gave birth to a baby for another couple, whom she met through Surrogacy UK (surrogacyuk.org)

Deciding to become a surrogate wasnt some road to Damascus moment. It was something that had been bubbling under for a long time. Through my work I meet a lot of women unable to conceive and I just cant imagine how distressing it must be for them. My children are everything to me, and it struck me that if I could help a couple who couldnt have what I have, it would be a pretty amazing thing to do.

See more here:
Would you donate a kidney to someone you had never met?

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, March 31, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Stem cells injected directly into heart muscle can help patients suffering from severe heart failure by improving an ailing heart's ability to pump blood, a new Danish trial indicates.

Doctors drew stem cells from patients' own bone marrow, and then injected those cells into portions of the heart where scar tissue seemed to interfere with heart function, explained lead researcher Dr. Anders Bruun Mathiasen. He is a research fellow in the Cardiac Catheterization Lab at Rigshospitalet University Hospital Copenhagen.

Within six months of treatment, patients who received stem cell injections had improved heart pumping function compared to patients receiving a placebo, according to findings that were to be presented Monday at the American Academy of Cardiology's annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

"We know these stem cells can initiate the growth of new blood vessels and heart muscle tissue," Mathiasen said. "That's what we think has happened."

If larger follow-up trials prove the treatment's effectiveness, it could provide hope for people suffering from untreatable heart failure.

"Heart failure is one of the biggest causes of death. If you can save lives or improve their symptoms, then a treatment like this would be extremely beneficial," said Dr. Cindy Grines, a cardiologist with the Detroit Medical Center and a spokeswoman for the American College of Cardiology.

The treatment could delay the need for a heart transplant and extend the lives of people who can't qualify for a transplant, Grines added.

This new clinical trial included 59 patients with severe heart failure who were considered untreatable. It is the largest randomized trial to test the potential of stem cell injections in treating heart disease, the researchers said.

In the trial, 39 patients received injections of stem cells into their heart muscle through a catheter inserted in the groin. The procedure required only local anesthesia, Mathiasen said. The other 20 received saline injections.

Originally posted here:
Stem Cells May Rejuvenate Failing Hearts, Study Suggests

Patients with severe ischemic heart disease and heart failure can benefit from a new treatment in which stem cells found in bone marrow are injected directly into the heart muscle, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 63rd Annual Scientific Session.

"Our results show that this stem cell treatment is safe and it improves heart function when compared to placebo," said Anders Bruun Mathiasen, M.D., research fellow in the Cardiac Catherization Lab at Rigshospitalet University Hospital Copenhagen, and lead investigator of the study. "This represents an exciting development that has the potential to benefit many people who suffer from this common and deadly disease."

Ischemic heart disease, also known as coronary artery disease, is the number one cause of death for both men and women in the United States. It results from a gradual buildup of plaque in the heart's coronary arteries and can lead to chest pain, heart attack and heart failure.

The study is the largest placebo-controlled double-blind randomized trial to treat patients with chronic ischemic heart failure by injecting a type of stem cell known as mesenchymal stromal cells directly into the heart muscle.

Six months after treatment, patients who received stem cell injections had improved heart pump function compared to patients receiving a placebo. Treated patients showed an 8.2-milliliter decrease in the study's primary endpoint, end systolic volume, which indicates the lowest volume of blood in the heart during the pumping cycle and is a key measure of the heart's ability to pump effectively. The placebo group showed an increase of 6 milliliters in end systolic volume.

The study included 59 patients with chronic ischemic heart disease and severe heart failure. Each patient first underwent a procedure to extract a small amount of bone marrow. Researchers then isolated from the marrow a small number of mesenchymal stromal cells and induced the cells to self-replicate. Patients then received an injection of either saline placebo or their own cultured mesenchymal stromal cells into the heart muscle through a catheter inserted in the groin.

"Isolating and culturing the stem cells is a relatively straightforward process, and the procedure to inject the stem cells into the heart requires only local anesthesia, so it appears to be all-in-all a promising treatment for patients who have no other options," Mathiasen said.

Although there are other therapies available for patients with ischemic heart disease, these therapies do not help all patients and many patients continue to face fatigue, shortness of breath and accumulation of fluid in the lungs and legs.

Previous studies have shown mesenchymal stromal cells can stimulate repair and regeneration in a variety of tissues, including heart muscle. Mathiasen said in the case of ischemic heart failure, the treatment likely works by facilitating the growth of new blood vessels and new heart muscle.

The study also supports findings from previous, smaller studies, which showed reduced scar tissue in the hearts of patients who received the stem cell treatment, offering additional confirmation that the treatment stimulates the growth of new heart muscle cells.

Read the rest here:
New human trial shows stem cells are effective for failing ...

Dr. Friedrich Schuening came to St. Louis to start a bone marrow transplant center at St. Louis University. In November 2012, the month before he was scheduled to open the facility, he was attending a conference when he felt a shortness of breath.

Tests disclosed that he had leukemia, the disease in which he was an expert. When the bone marrow transplant center opened, he became one of the first patients.

I never would have thought, in my wildest dreams, after having treated a disease my whole professional life that I would be a patient myself, he told the Post-Dispatch at the time.

Dr. Schuening underwent two bone marrow transplants. The first was in February 2013, and a month later he was back at work treating patients. But his leukemia returned, and doctors performed a second transplant in June 2013.

His leukemia went into remission. But the bone marrow transplant, although successful, led to complications that caused his death, according to one of his physicians, Dr. Mark J. Fesler.

Dr. Schuening died on Thursday (March 27, 2014) at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. He was 71 and had lived in Creve Coeur.

He devoted his life to treating patients with blood cancers. He was an internationally known expert in stem cells, regenerative medicine and bone marrow transplants. He wrote more than 120 scientific papers.

He came to St. Louis University in May 2011, to start his third bone marrow transplant center. The first two were at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and Vanderbilt University, according to St. Louis University.

Friedrich Georg Schuening was born in 1942 in Trier, Germany. His father served in the German Navy, and his mother taught school.

At first, Dr. Schuening studied theology at the University of Mainz in Germany. Instead of going into the ministry, he began studying psychiatry, then switched to medicine to study the body. He earned an M.D. at the University of Hamburg.

Original post:
Doctor who started a cancer center at SLU became one of its first patients

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

31-Mar-2014

Contact: Beth Casteel bcasteel@acc.org 202-375-6275 American College of Cardiology

WASHINGTON (March 31, 2014) Patients with severe ischemic heart disease and heart failure can benefit from a new treatment in which stem cells found in bone marrow are injected directly into the heart muscle, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 63rd Annual Scientific Session.

"Our results show that this stem cell treatment is safe and it improves heart function when compared to placebo," said Anders Bruun Mathiasen, M.D., research fellow in the Cardiac Catherization Lab at Rigshospitalet University Hospital Copenhagen, and lead investigator of the study. "This represents an exciting development that has the potential to benefit many people who suffer from this common and deadly disease."

Ischemic heart disease, also known as coronary artery disease, is the number one cause of death for both men and women in the United States. It results from a gradual buildup of plaque in the heart's coronary arteries and can lead to chest pain, heart attack and heart failure.

The study is the largest placebo-controlled double-blind randomized trial to treat patients with chronic ischemic heart failure by injecting a type of stem cell known as mesenchymal stromal cells directly into the heart muscle.

Six months after treatment, patients who received stem cell injections had improved heart pump function compared to patients receiving a placebo. Treated patients showed an 8.2-milliliter decrease in the study's primary endpoint, end systolic volume, which indicates the lowest volume of blood in the heart during the pumping cycle and is a key measure of the heart's ability to pump effectively. The placebo group showed an increase of 6 milliliters in end systolic volume.

The study included 59 patients with chronic ischemic heart disease and severe heart failure. Each patient first underwent a procedure to extract a small amount of bone marrow. Researchers then isolated from the marrow a small number of mesenchymal stromal cells and induced the cells to self-replicate. Patients then received an injection of either saline placebo or their own cultured mesenchymal stromal cells into the heart muscle through a catheter inserted in the groin.

"Isolating and culturing the stem cells is a relatively straightforward process, and the procedure to inject the stem cells into the heart requires only local anesthesia, so it appears to be all-in-all a promising treatment for patients who have no other options," Mathiasen said.

More:
New human trial shows stem cells are effective for failing hearts

Patients with severe ischemic heart disease and heart failure can benefit from a new treatment in which stem cells found in bone marrow are injected directly into the heart muscle, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 63rd Annual Scientific Session.

"Our results show that this stem cell treatment is safe and it improves heart function when compared to placebo," said Anders Bruun Mathiasen, M.D., research fellow in the Cardiac Catherization Lab at Rigshospitalet University Hospital Copenhagen, and lead investigator of the study. "This represents an exciting development that has the potential to benefit many people who suffer from this common and deadly disease."

Ischemic heart disease, also known as coronary artery disease, is the number one cause of death for both men and women in the United States. It results from a gradual buildup of plaque in the heart's coronary arteries and can lead to chest pain, heart attack and heart failure.

The study is the largest placebo-controlled double-blind randomized trial to treat patients with chronic ischemic heart failure by injecting a type of stem cell known as mesenchymal stromal cells directly into the heart muscle.

Six months after treatment, patients who received stem cell injections had improved heart pump function compared to patients receiving a placebo. Treated patients showed an 8.2-milliliter decrease in the study's primary endpoint, end systolic volume, which indicates the lowest volume of blood in the heart during the pumping cycle and is a key measure of the heart's ability to pump effectively. The placebo group showed an increase of 6 milliliters in end systolic volume.

The study included 59 patients with chronic ischemic heart disease and severe heart failure. Each patient first underwent a procedure to extract a small amount of bone marrow. Researchers then isolated from the marrow a small number of mesenchymal stromal cells and induced the cells to self-replicate. Patients then received an injection of either saline placebo or their own cultured mesenchymal stromal cells into the heart muscle through a catheter inserted in the groin.

"Isolating and culturing the stem cells is a relatively straightforward process, and the procedure to inject the stem cells into the heart requires only local anesthesia, so it appears to be all-in-all a promising treatment for patients who have no other options," Mathiasen said.

Although there are other therapies available for patients with ischemic heart disease, these therapies do not help all patients and many patients continue to face fatigue, shortness of breath and accumulation of fluid in the lungs and legs.

Previous studies have shown mesenchymal stromal cells can stimulate repair and regeneration in a variety of tissues, including heart muscle. Mathiasen said in the case of ischemic heart failure, the treatment likely works by facilitating the growth of new blood vessels and new heart muscle.

The study also supports findings from previous, smaller studies, which showed reduced scar tissue in the hearts of patients who received the stem cell treatment, offering additional confirmation that the treatment stimulates the growth of new heart muscle cells.

The rest is here:
New human trial shows stem cells are effective for failing hearts: Bone marrow-derived stem cells injected directly ...

Graham Parker, 41, from County Durham is one of first to benefit from trial Some participants were given stem cells and the rest placebo Stem cells were taken from bone marrow in his hip and injected into heart Years later Graham feels better - but still classed as having heart failure

By Carol Davis

PUBLISHED: 18:04 EST, 31 March 2014 | UPDATED: 18:25 EST, 31 March 2014

Graham Parker took part in a trial using stem cells to repair heart damage

A major new trial is using patients' own stem cells to treat heart failure. One of the first to benefit is Graham Parker, 41, an archaeology student from Stanley, County Durham. He tells CAROL DAVIS his story.

Working as a supply teacher a few years ago, I started feeling exhausted. I couldn't walk more than 50 metres without pausing, was constantly breathless and would wake at night coughing.

At first I thought it was a cold or flu, or the stress of a house move. But my mum, a retired nurse, pointed out I'd been ill for two months, and sent me to the doctor.

The GP suspected asthma, and gave me an inhaler. But within a week it was worse and I couldn't walk more than a few yards without retching.

So I saw a second GP. She didn't say what she thought it was - she called an ambulance instead. I was admitted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Gateshead, then transferred to the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle while they ran several tests, including an ECG (electrocardiogram) and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan.

Doctors explained I had heart failure: part of my heart muscle was damaged and the lower pumping chamber had become flabby so couldn't pump blood round my body properly. This was why I was so exhausted.

See the article here:
Revolutionary stem cell op to treat heart failure

Ontario student Moneet Mann is coming to Surrey in her search for a bone marrow donor. Submitted/Vancouver Desi

MANPREET GREWAL VANCOUVER DESI

Will you marrow me?

A 24-year-old Brampton, Ont. girl is bringing her desperate search for a bone marrow match to Surrey this weekend.

Moneet Mann was studying to be a teacher at Thunder Bays Lakehead University when she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in October last year.

Although the news has been devastating for her and her family, she has chosen to see the blessing in her early diagnoses. With a stem cell transplant she can get back to her life, her school, her friends and passion to teach children.

But her challenge is that a perfect bone marrow match isnt always available in extreme cases, the odds of a match may be as little as one in 750,000.

Since her diagnosis shes started up her Will You Marrow Me? campaign to hunt for a donor, which will be holding a swabbing event alongside Canadian Blood Services at Surreys Dukh Nivaran Gurdwara on Sunday. Mann is particularly putting the call out to South Asian donors between the ages of 17 to 35.

According to Canadian Blood Services, matching between donor and patient happens on a genetic level. What this means is that if a patient is from a certain ethnic background, their donor is most likely going to be from the same ethnic group.

Doctors consider young men to be optimal donors because stem cells from young men can produce fewer chances of complications post-transplant. Also, men are typically physically bigger than women, so they can produce a greater volume of stem cells for the patient.

Link:
Ontario student's search for bone marrow donor brings her to Surrey

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Paul Walker will undergo an eye procedure next week that could give him back simple pleasures such as working in the garden or leafing through a magazine.

The procedure, an experimental stem-cell treatment, has already restored some sight for two other central Ohioans and holds the same hope for Walker, a Bexley resident who is legally blind.

Are you kidding? was Walkers initial reaction when Susan Benes, a Columbus neuro-ophthalmologist, told him a few months ago that a clinical trial offered the promise of better vision.

The Stem Cell Ophthalmology Treatment Study is a federally approved trial being conducted at Retinal Associates, a medical practice near Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The study tests stem-cell treatment on people 18 and older with glaucoma, macular degeneration and various retinal disorders.

The trial, which began in August and is scheduled to run until 2017, can offer only anecdotal evidence of effectiveness at this point, said study director Steven Levy, a Connecticut doctor who is president of the consulting company MD Stem Cells.

Still, results have been encouraging in the 35 or so people treated to date.

Originally posted here:
Stem-cell treatment may help those with severe vision problems

Fayetteville, Arkansas (PRWEB) March 26, 2014

CardioWise, Inc. and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) have signed a Beta Site Agreement to serve as a clinical test site for CardioWise Multiparametric Strain Analysis (MPSA) Software. The CardioWise software will be used in clinical research protocol number 12-H-0078, sponsored by the NHLBI entitled, Preliminary Assessment of Direct Intra-Myocardial Injection of Autologous Bone Marrow-derived Stromal Cells on Patients Undergoing Revascularization for Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) with Depressed Left Ventricular Function. The Principle Investigator is Pamela G. Robey, Ph.D., and Dr. Keith A. Horvath is the Cardiothoracic Surgeon on the clinical trial. Details of the study are available here: http://clinicalstudies.info.nih.gov/cgi/wais/bold032001.pl?A_12-H-0078.html@mesenchymal@@@@.

Bone marrow stromal stem cells (also known as mesenchymal stem cells) have been isolated and are found to make large amounts of growth factors. Because they make growth factors, these cells can help regrow tissue and encourage repair of damaged tissue. Tests on damaged heart muscle suggest that injecting these cells directly into damaged heart muscle can improve heart function. Researchers want to give stem cells to people who are having open-heart surgery to see if they can help to repair heart muscle damage. The objectives of the study are to test the safety and effectiveness of bone marrow stromal stem cell injections given during heart surgery to treat heart muscle damage. The CardioWise MPSA software will be used to help to determine the efficacy of the stem cell treatment.

The patients who enroll in the protocol will receive one baseline cardiac MRI (CMR) scan and 3 additional follow up CMR scans. Those CMR scans will be analyzed by CardioWise analysis software and the analyses will be compared to determine whether the stem cell injections can improve the contractile function of the heart muscle. Dr. Andrew E. Arai, Chief of the Advanced Cardiovascular Imaging Research Group in the NHLBIs Division of Intramural Research will be leading the analysis of the CMR images using the CardioWise MPSA software. Dr. Arai is Past President of the Society of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR), the leading international professional organization focused on CMR.

The CardioWise analysis software is uniquely capable of analyzing the three-dimensional motion of the heart that is acquired from cardiac MRI images and then comparing the analysis at 15,300 points to the motion of a normal heart model. The analysis detects portions of the heart that are moving abnormally and demonstrates to what degree the heart muscle has been affected. Since MRI uses no ionizing radiation or contrast, it is completely non-invasive and poses minimal risk to the patient. This allows the patient to be followed through the course of treatment and to measure outcomes of interventions such as the stem cell therapy. In the near future, CardioWise MPSA may aid doctors to determine what intervention, such as surgery, stent insertion, or drug is most appropriate for the patient who presents with cardiovascular disease symptoms.

CardioWise is commercializing patent-pending, non-invasive Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging (CMR) analysis software that produces a quantified 4D image model of the human heart, called Multiparametric Strain Analysis (MPSA). CardioWise heart analysis software combined with cardiac MRI is a single diagnostic test that is able to provide quantitative analysis of the myocardium, arteries and valves with an unprecedented level of detail. It has the opportunity to become the new gold standard of care for heart health analysis. CardioWise is a VIC Technology Venture Development portfolio company.

Continue reading here:
CardioWise and the National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Complete Beta Site ...

Click photo to enlarge

Ryan Manansala, 29, of San Joseis being treated in Houston for leukemia and awaiting a bone marrow transplant that may save his life. (Courtesy Quan Nguyen)

SAN JOSE -- Ryan Manansala spent much of his 29 years helping others, whether it was aiding autistic children or mentoring kids as a Big Brother. Now battling cancer, he's devoting his energy to promoting bone marrow drives that can help him and others find donor matches that can save their lives.

"Yeah, you could say I'm the poster boy right now," the 29-year-old San Jose resident said from a cancer center in Houston. "I personally don't like it, but there is an obligation to others. I don't want to see people have to wait and wait on the list and then die."

He learned two years ago he had acute myeloid leukemia, a form of blood cancer. He needs a bone-marrow transplant and he needs it now. Talking on his cellphone from the MD Anderson Cancer Center, Manansala said he was there for special chemotherapy treatment to buy him some time.

While a local bone marrow registration drive is named after him, Operation Save Ryan is not only for him. The drives will be held Saturday and Sunday at the Great Mall in Milpitas, on Saturday night at the San Jose Earthquakes soccer game in Santa Clara and on April 15 and 16 at UC Santa Cruz, his alma mater. Donors should be 18 to 44 years old.

"If they find a match for me, fine," Manansala said. "But it's really about getting more people to register for the benefit of everyone on the transplant list."

Not that his case can be pushed aside. Chemotherapy worked for him early, but then the leukemia came back with a vengeance. Along the way, the illness cost the Yerba Buena High graduate his job working with disabled children. Then his father lost his job. Although his mother continued to work, the Manansala family lost its house in East San Jose.

"It's been a roller coaster in the extreme," he said. But looking on the bright side, "My father losing his job allowed him to become my full-time caregiver."

For severely afflicted AML patients, bone marrow transplants are often the last hope. In the procedure, healthy stem cells from a compatible donor are inserted into the bone marrow of leukemia patients to create normal blood cells.

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A leukemia patient from San Jose becomes a reluctant crusader for bone marrow drives

by Mark Carter on Wednesday, Mar. 26, 2014 1:49 pm

CardioWise CEO Jack Coats

CardioWise has partnered with federal agencies to provide its cardiac analysis software for a national clinical research study, the Fayetteville startup announced Wednesday.

The beta site agreement is with the National Institutes of Health and the National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute. It will study the use of bone marrow stem cells during cardiac surgery to treat heart muscle dysfunction associated with ischemic heart disease or damage from heart attack, according to a news release.

Details of the study are available here. The study will be conducted at the NIH Heart Center at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Md. Suburban Hospital is a member of the Johns Hopkins Medicine system.

The software,Multiparametric Strain Analysis (MPSA), was developed to analyze the three-dimensional motion of the heart acquired from cardiac MRI images. It then compares the analysis to the motion of a normal heart model.

"The objectives of the study are to test the safety and effectiveness of bone marrow stromal stem cell injections given during heart surgery to treat heart muscle damage," said CardioWise CEO Jack Coats. "The CardioWise MPSA software will be used to help to determine the efficacy of the stem cell treatment."

Coats said the analysis detects portions of the heart that are moving abnormally and demonstrates to what degree the heart muscle has been affected.

"Since MRI uses no ionizing radiation or contrast, it is completely non-invasive and poses minimal risk to the patient," he said. "This allows the patient to be followed through the course of treatment and to measure outcomes of interventions such as the stem cell therapy. In the near future, CardioWise MPSA may aid doctors to determine what intervention, such as surgery, stent insertion or drug, is most appropriate for the patient who presents with cardiovascular disease symptoms."

CardioWise is a client firm of Innovate Arkansas and a portfolio company of VIC Technology Venture Development of Fayetteville.

Read more from the original source:
CardioWise Software Chosen for National Heart Study

The trials involve injecting adult stem cells derived from adipose tissue or fat into cartilage to stimulate its regeneration

Researchers in Galway predict that stem cells could be used to treat osteoarthritis within five years, following successful initial clinical trials.

The trials involve injecting adult stem cells derived from adipose tissue or fat into cartilage to stimulate its regeneration.

Osteoarthritis affects some 70 million people across the EU, and current treatment is limited to surgery or pain management.

Some 400,000 people in Ireland are affected by this most common form of human arthritis, which is characterised by the often very painful degeneration of cartilage in joints.

Successful trial NUI Galway (NUIG) scientists, who are part of a 9 million EU-funded project, have just finished the successful phase one clinical trial.

Prof Frank Barry, scientific director of NUIGs Regenerative Medicine Institute (Remedi), yesterday said the positive early results indicate a treatment was in sight.

From the clinical trials conducted so far, we have seen the first signs of finding a cure for this truly incapacitating disease which affects so many, Prof Barry said. Using the patients own stem cells we have been able to treat their diseased joints, and relieve their suffering and burden of pain.

Whilst we are still in the early stages of clinical trials, the results so far are extremely positive such that the use of stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis could become a reality for patients within the next five years, he said.

Adipose stem cells Stem cells can be harvested in large quantities from adipose tissue or fat, with minimally invasive surgery. These cells have emerged in recent years as a good alternative to stem cells derived from bone marrow, Prof Barry notes.

Read the original post:
Stem cell trials on tackling osteoarthritis may lead to treatment in five years

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

21-Mar-2014

Contact: Meng Zhao eic@nrren.org 86-138-049-98773 Neural Regeneration Research

Studies have shown that the differentiation rate of grafted bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells into mature neuron-like cells is very low. Therefore, it is very important to establish an effcient and stable induction protocol to promote the differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells into neuron-like cells in vitro and elucidate the mechanisms underlying differentiation for the treatment of central nervous system diseases. Jie Du and colleagues from Sichuan University in China found that glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor/bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells have a higher rate of induction into neuron-like cells, and this enhanced differentiation into neuron-like cells may be associated with up-regulated expression of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor, nerve growth factor and growth-associated protein-43. The researchers provide experimental support for the therapeutic use of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor gene-modified bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in transplantation strategies for central nervous system diseases. The relevant paper has been published in the Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 9, No. 1, 2014).

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Article: " Transfection of the glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor gene promotes neuronal differentiation," by Jie Du1, 2, Xiaoqing Gao3, Li Deng3, Nengbin Chang2, Huailin Xiong2, Yu Zheng1 (1 Department of Physiology, West China School of Preclinical and Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, Sichuan Province, China; 2 Department of Anatomy, Luzhou Medical College, Luzhou 646000, Sichuan Province, China; 3 Research Center for Preclinical Medicine, Luzhou Medical College, Luzhou 646000, Sichuan Province, China)

Du J, Gao XQ, Deng L, Chang NB, Xiong HL, Zheng Y. Transfection of the glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor gene promotes neuronal differentiation. Neural Regen Res. 2014;9(1):33-40.

Contact:

Meng Zhao eic@nrren.org 86-138-049-98773 Neural Regeneration Research http://www.nrronline.org/

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GDNF transfection promotes neuronal differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells