In describing
stem cell therapy, the first step is to define and explain what a
stem cell actually is. A stem cell is frequently referred to as a
“blank” cell. It is capable of changing or growing into another
more definitive type of cell in the body, such as a skin cell, a
muscle cell, or a nerve cell. A stem cell is microscopic in size and
can only be seen under a microscope. Stem cells are exciting news in
both medical and scientific circles. These cells they can be used to
replace or repair damaged tissues and cells in the body. They can
serve as a built-in repair system for the human body, replenishing
other cells as long as a person is still alive. A collection of stem
cells can be harvested and stored for future use. The stem cell is
essentially free of genetic defects and it is so immature in its form
that they can be transplanted into people of all types without
worrying about rejection such as in a blood transfusion or an organ
transplant. Stem cells have the potential to multiply and create
more of the same cells, but this can only be done in a lab where
culture media and other chemicals are added to promote this growth in
numbers. With proper techniques, the stem cells can be caused to
mature, forming more definitive cells such as muscle, nerve or liver
cells. While still in the early research phase, these techniques
show huge promise. Now a patient cannot go to a physician and
receive these differentiated cells to treat their medical issues.
Although this all sounds like it is brand new, therapy with stem
cells has been around for many years. The fist example of stem cell
therapy was the treatment of people with blood-system cancer, like
leukemia, where they were first treated to kill off all of the
diseased cells with chemotherapy and then they received stem cells
form a matched donor to replenish the lost cells. These transplanted
cells originated from human adult donors or form umbilical blood
collected during childbirth.
Using stem cells
to repair certain parts of the body is commonly referred to as stem
cell therapy or regenerative medicine. Researchers can grow stem
cells in a lab for use in clinical trials. There are many clinical
trials going on around the world about the potential future uses of
stem cells. Practicing physicians can presently do what are referred
to as autologous stem cell transplants. In this case, stem cells are
collected form the patient and returned to the patient into a
specific area in a higher concentration. How this can be performed
is through what is commonly referred to as adipose-derived stem cell
therapy. In this procedure a small amount of fat, or adipose tissue,
is harvested from the person’s body. The fat cells are then
separated from the tissue between them that holds the fat cells
together. Think of the fat cell being a tile on the floor and the
tissue I am referencing is the grout that holds the tiles together.
In this case, that grout is called stromal vascular fraction (SVF).
It is in the SVF where the stem cells reside. The SVF contains other
proteins in it besides just stem cells. These are cytokines, growth
factors, and mesenchymal cells. Mesenchymal cells are, like stem
cells, multi-potent, and can differentiate into other types of tissue
such as cartilage or bone cells. The SVF with its healing properties
can be the administered to the patient directly into an injured area
such as into a knee joint or given through an intravenous line. In
cases such as this, the patient is treated in one day with no
manipulation of the cells. It is an autologous transplant, coming
from the same person, so there is no risk of rejection or allergy.
The SVF provides the elements need for tissues to heal as it contains
stem cells, mesenchymal cell, cytokine and growth factors. At the Regenerative Medicine Institute of Nevada we provide SVF therapy as
well as Cytokine Growth Factor Therapy with Platelet Rich Plasma
(PRP) therapy to assist our patients heal from a myriad of different
medical problems or acute and chronic injuries.
