Stem cells

[Adrienne]

I just saw a program on Radio Canada (one of our French-speaking stations) about research that is being done in one of Montreal's big teaching hospitals. It has been doing studies taking one's own blood after a heart attack and getting stem cells from this blood. They divide the people into a group that actually gets the stem cells injected into the artery where the blockage caused the attack and another which gets a placebo. In the stem-cell group, the patients EF goes up 10%. The doctor speaking said that this has never been seen before and it was significant.

 

[netmiff]

cool stuff ! I was hoping, in the days when my surgery was "sometime" to be able to put it off until the technology was available that they could grow me my own replacement valve from stemm cells - wouldn't that be neat?? no warfarin and no possibility of a re-do from using tissue, either ! And think what that could do for the young kids, it would grow with them like a native valve - in fact, it would be a native valve!

 

[Laura R]

It is pretty wonderful! I was also hoping, like you Jeanette, that maybe the technology would already be in place by the time I needed a surgery.
Laura

 

[briansmom]

Most of these trials have to have the stem cells injected within 30 days of the heart attack. There are a few trials going on in the US (Texas and Florida) for heart failure patients whose heart damage is older than the 30 days. Unfortunately, both have said that my son does not qualify.

 

[DeWayne]

I have often wondered about stem cells. If they took stem cells from me to say grow a new aortic valve would it be bicuspid? Since mine was a true symetrical bicuspid valve does my DNA tell it to develop that way? I asked my Doctor that once and he said I raised a very interesting point.

 

[Adrienne]

I have often wondered about stem cells. If they took stem cells from me to say grow a new aortic valve would it be bicuspid? Since mine was a true symetrical bicuspid valve does my DNA tell it to develop that way? I asked my Doctor that once and he said I raised a very interesting point.

That is a very good question.

 

[alpha 1]

bav from stem cells

bav from stem cells

wow, i think it is great that they are using the stem cells, wouldnt it be wonderful if they could really grow your own valve, and even if it turned out to be a bicuspid, if it was really new and healthy, wouldnt it last a really really long time, maybe even a lifetime, wouldnt it be great, because we didnt even know about adams until he was 28 years old, he is 29 now, so almost 30 years on top of that is a really long time, i hope they work on this stuff every day, it gives us all hope, thanks for sharing the info.
alpha 1

 

[geckley]

With my wife expecting anyday now we made a choice on banking the bebies chord blood. We thought it would be a safe bet in case anything happened to him. As it turns out they're really doing alot with chord blood now and it isn't far fetched that my new son could one day save my life. He's not here yet but he has already done part of it. I want to see his children so I have a good reason to fight on.