You primer to Stem Cell Therapy and how it can change the world

Stem Cell Therapy

A major segment of regenerative medicines, Stem cell therapy has made remarkable progress in the recent years. Stem cell therapy is mainly used when the natural responses of the body is not enough for restoring the functional abilities of tissues and organs. It helps in restoring organs and tissue functions for patients who are suffering from severe chronic diseases or injuries. In the following you will find information regarding this new branch of medical treatment.    

 What is stem cell therapy?

Stem cells in bone marrow - 3d rendered illustration

Stem cell therapy comprises of a group of medical techniques of substituting cells damaged or destructed by an illness or severe injuries with healthy and living cells. Though this branch of medical technology is comparatively newer, it has already proven its might. Research regarding stem cell therapy is going on all around the world to find new ways of effective implementations. At present this therapy is being used for treating diseases like cancer, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, spinal cord and other injuries and eye diseases.

Do we really need stem cell therapy?

 children suffering from leukemia

The development of stem cell therapy resulted out of the growing crisis in the field of organ transplantation. Lowered mortality rate and longer life expectancy rate have created an aging population, the members of which want to afford best treatments. However, there are around 90,000 patients in US alone who are in the waiting list for organ transplantation. Stem cell therapy can be the answer to their prayers and also help in providing timely treatment to patients whose medical needs are not being met properly.

Through regenerative techniques stem cells can be used for creating functional cells that will repair the organs and tissues in the body which have become damaged beyond repair due to age, congenital defects and diseases. Stem cells can induce a cell renewal and repairing process by quickly reaching the damaged organs and tissues. The importance and scope of stem cell therapy becomes evident when we look at how the lives of hundreds of children suffering from leukemia have been lengthened by using blood stem cells effectively.

How stem cell therapy is being used?

Extensive research is being conducted to determine whether stem cells can help in treating brain degeneration diseases like Parkinson’s disease, Amyotrophic, Lateral Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease. Traumatic brain injury and brain stroke both cause cell death. In 2013, a clinical trial was conducted in which stem cells were used in the brain of patients who had stroke.

Stem cell therapy can also be utilized in heart diseases for generating heart muscle cells, stimulating the growth of new blood vessels and secreting growth factors. As there are stem cells in the hair follicles, researchers believe that stem cell treatment can be used for effectively treating baldness. Chronic blood diseases, blindness, vision impairment, deafness and infertility can also be treated with the help of stem cells.

Some more facts about stem cell therapy

 bone marrow transplantation

The FDA has recognized stem cells as drugs. When a patient is given this drug it does not get removed by the physiological system but rather becomes its part. The side effects of stem cell treatment are comparatively milder. Till now the only transplantation using stem cell treatment that has been approved by FDA in USA is bone marrow transplantation.

Stem cell therapy is a part of regenerative medicine. It can help in replacing damaged organs and tissues in our body. This segment of medical treatments has immense scope and research regarding correct implementations is still going on.

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