Stem cell therapy

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, Dec, 2005 by Jule Klotter

The public eye is so fixated on the medical use of fetal and embryonic stem cells that the benefit of stem cells found in umbilical cord blood is largely ignored. Embryonic stem cells can produce any type of cell found in the body. Because of this ability and their attraction for areas of injury or disease, these stem cells have therapeutic potential for many conditions. But they also have some drawbacks. First of all, embryonic stem cells are difficult to control and can cause cancer when used in an environment that lacks the natural inhibitors found in a growing embryo. Also, their use evokes a heated ethical debate because they must be obtained from human embryos or fetal tissue. Stem cells obtained from umbilical cord blood present neither the hazard nor moral dilemma; but many researchers consider them less able to produce a variety of cells and tissue. They believe that human umbilical cord blood stem cells (hUCSCs) are only useful for treating blood diseases, including leukemia. Research and therapeutic applications by practitioners around the world are showing that hUCSCs have greater potential than currently recognized.

In a question-answer article for Alternative & Complementary Therapies, Anthony G. Payne, PhD, of Steenblock Research Institute (CA) explains how cord blood stem cell research is helping children with cerebral palsy and adults suffering from brain damage caused by a recent stroke. People with macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy have also responded to this treatment. The FDA has not yet approved the use of cord blood or cord blood stem cells to treat neurological diseases, disorders, or injuries. Because of this, using hUCSCs to treat neurological dysfunctions in the US requires completing an intricate and expensive Investigational New Drug Application (IND). Since using hUCSCs for any purpose other than a few FDA-approved conditions is difficult in the US, SRI refers patients that may benefit from a stem cell injection to research centers outside of the US where the treatment is legal.

Although SRI does not administer stem cell injections, the institute has developed protocols and dietary recommendations designed to increase the effectiveness of the treatment. For example, SRI recommends that people considering stem cell therapy deal with elevated levels of heavy metals before treatment as these metals will kill cells. Secondary infections must also be cleared up before treatment. Stem cells are attracted by chemical signals from inflammation and damaged tissue. Unless abscessed teeth, inflamed guts, or other infections are dealt with, injected stem cells will travel to all these sites instead of descending upon the intended target. The cells' attraction for inflammation explains why old injuries are less responsive to stem cell therapy. Payne writes, "In a patient who had a stroke (or any other injury) in the distant past, the old injury heals over, like a wound on a hand that scars over and is no longer red and inflamed." SRI's director, David A. Steenblock, MS, DO, has developed ways to amplify the chemical signals given off by old injuries. He and his staff also have a detailed dietary protocol that patients should follow before and after the injection.

SRI often refers patients to Dr. Fernando Ramirez, MD at the International Spinal Cord Regeneration Center in Tijuana, Mexico. Dr. Ramirez uses protocols developed by Dr. Steenblock, and he retains SRI to gather and analyze patient response information and data. During stem cell therapy, a single injection of over 1.5 million human umbilical cord stem cells is given to adults and older children intravenously (over about 20 minutes). Infants and young children receive the therapy by way of a subcutaneous injection near the navel. Based on the data he has seen, Payne believes that hUCSCs will become a first-line treatment for cerebral palsy. Dr. Ramirez gets the cells from healthy mothers who deliver healthy infants at a major East coast hospital. The cord blood is processed, according to FDA and American Blood Bank screening standards, at a medical school-affiliated laboratory. The first injection costs $14,500 and each treatment thereafter costs $6,000. Payne says, "Most major changes are seen during the first 180 days following treatment. They plateau and then diminish over time, although some patients report seeing benefits cropping up more than 1 year following a single treatment."

Payne, Anthony G., PhD. The Steenblock Research Institute Patient's Handbook on Umbilical Cord Stem Cell Therapy.

Schopick, Julia. Umbilical Cord Stem Cell Therapy: Q & A with Anthony G. Payne, PhD, of the Steenblock Research Institute. Alternative & Complementary Therapies Journal May 2005