Main Category: Stem Cell Research
Also Included In: Muscular Dystrophy / ALS
Article Date: 02 Sep 2013 – 2:00 PDT
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a nearly always fatal disease affecting the motor neurons; symptoms include weakness, muscle loss, twitches and spasms, and eventually difficulty swallowing and breathing. The exact cause of the disease is still unknown, though genetic abnormalities do account for some instances. Treatment is aimed at slowing the progress of the disease and making the patient more comfortable. Precision StemCell is confident that its stem cell therapies represent a new frontier in ALS research and may one day even lead to a cure.
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Precision StemCell, an outpatient treatment facility in Colombia, has successfully performed a breakthrough stem cell procedure that may soon improve the lives of everyone with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. The new procedure consists of an advanced, image-guided injection of umbilical cord matrix stem cells into the patient’s nerve roots at the point where they exit the spinal cord.
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“We have learned that the stem cells of people with ALS are not as viable as those from a healthy person, meaning they do not grow well, if at all. Donor cells have the potential to create much better outcomes, but unfortunately the culturing and altering of stem cells is not allowed in the US, which is why Dr. Williams opened the clinic in Colombia,” explained Precision StemCell’s Dr. Leonardo Gonzalez. “In addition to this latest treatment option, we’re continually exploring other techniques, including new applications for gene therapy. Dr. Williams and I believe we are on the verge of making a great leap forward in the treatment of ALS and similar neurodegenerative diseases.”
Williams continued: “Young, healthy stem cells have enormous restorative potential that we’re only beginning to realize. We know, for example, that umbilical cord matrix stem cells produce immune system-boosting substances and growth factors that slow down ALS. The next steps will involve refining the process even further to build on our current positive results. Stem cells almost certainly hold the key to reversing this tragic condition.”
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