www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article1637528.ece
Sitemap From The Times April 11, 2007 Diabetics cured by stem-cell treatment David Rose Diabetics using stem-cell therapy have been able to stop taking insulin injections for the first time, after their bodies started to produce the hormone naturally again. In a breakthrough trial, 15 young patients with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes were given drugs to suppress their immune systems followed by transfusions of stem cells drawn from their own blood. The results show that insulin-dependent diabetics can be freed from reliance on needles by an injection of their own stem cells. The therapy could signal a revolution in the treatment of the condition, which affects more than 300,000 Britons. People with type 1 diabetes have to give themselves regular injections to control blood-sugar levels, as their ability to create the hormone naturally is destroyed by an immune disorder.
British scientists grow part of human heart All but two of the volunteers in the trial, details of which are published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), do not need daily insulin injections up to three years after stopping their treatment regimes. The findings were released to reporters yesterday as the future of US stem-cell research was being debated in Washington. Stem cells are immature, unprogrammed cells that have the ability to grow into different kinds of tissue and can be sourced from people of all ages. Previous studies have suggested that stem-cell therapies offer huge potential to treat a variety of diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and motor neuron disease.
reported that stem-cell injections could repair organ damage in heart attack victims. But research using the most versatile kind of stem cells -- those acquired from human embryos -- is currently opposed by powerful critics, including President Bush. The JAMA study provides the first clinical evidence for the efficacy of stem cells in type 1 diabetes. Sufferers of the chronic condition, which normally emerges in childhood or early adulthood, have to inject themselves at least four times a day. Type 2 diabetes, which tends to affect people later in life, is linked to lifestyle factors such as obesity. There are almost two million type 2 diabetics in Briton, most of whom control their blood-sugar levels with pills or through diet. The new study, by a joint team of Brazilian and American scientists, found that one of the first patients to undergo the procedure has not used any supplemental synthetic insulin for three years. "Very encouraging results were obtained in a small number of patients with early-onset disease," the authors, led by Julio Voltarelli, from the University of So Paulo in Ribeiro Preto, Brazil. "Ninety-three per cent of patients achieved different periods of insulin independence and treatment-related toxicity was low, with no mortality." Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body's own immune system malfunctions and destroys the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas, causing a shortage in the hormone. By the time most patients receive a clinical diagnosis, 60 to 80 per cent of their beta cells have been wiped out. The disease progresses from this point very quickly, and can result in serious long-term complications including blindness, kidney failure, heart disease and stroke. Dr Voltarelli's team hoped that if they intervened early enough they could wipe out and then rebuild the body's immune system by using stem cells, preverving a reservoir of beta cells and allowing them to to regenerate. They enrolled Brazilian diabetics aged between 14 and 31 who had been diagnosed within the previous six weeks. After stem cells had been harvested from their blood, they then underwent a mild form of chemotherapy to eliminate the white blood cells causing damage to the pancreas. They were then given transfusions of their own stem cells to help rebuild their immune systems. Richard Burt, a co-author of the study from Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, said that 14 of the 15 patients were insulin-free for some time following the treatment. Eleven of those were able to dispense with supplemental insulin immediately following the infusion of stem cells and have not had recourse to synthetic insulin since then, he said. "Two other patients needed some supplemental insulin for 12 and 20 months after the procedure, but eventually both were able to wean themselves from taking daily shots," he added. One patient went 12 months without shots, but relapsed a year after treatment after suffering a viral infection, and resumed daily insulin injections. Another volunteer was eliminated from the study because of complications. The therapy, known as autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, has already shown benefits to individuals with a range of auto-immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease and lupus. There are still question marks about exactly how the treatment works, and further studies will be required to fully evaluate it's safety and efficacy. "As a research scientist I am always hesitant to speak of a cure, but the initial results have been good and show the importance of conducting more trials," Dr Burt said. Given the right funding opportunities, university hospitals in London could be conducting research into the therapy within the next 12 months, he added. "It will probably be five to eight years before we see a treatment being widely available," he said. In an accompanying editorial in JAMA, Dr Jay Skyler, of the Diabetes Research Institute at the University of Miami, wrote: "Research in this field is likely to explode in the next few years and should include randomised controlled trials, as well as mechanistic studies."
Those of you with strong views should spare a thought for the folks that suffer from conditions that could be cured. Think of the people who are suffering when you look in the mirror. George Wilton, New York, USA I am Juvenile onset Diabetic and I will fly anywhere to take part of the cure! I need my life back again being a mother of two very active young sons to live for! Amy, Orem, Utah As abortion is legal in the United States, why not make use of the foetuses? I suppose if you wanted to STRETCH, you could make the argument that it would further promote abortions. As it is, thousands of babies are being aborted every day. You would prefer to just incinerate or throw them in a dumpster rather than use them for scientific research? Jim Isaacs, Austin, TX An interesting discussion, but it ignores the fact that Bush is the first president to allow any public financing of embrionc stem cell research. Bill Brownson, Lipan, TX Treatment and/or cure efficacy score is 72 for adult stem cell sources to ) for embryonic stem cells. Indeed all that has been shown so far about highly undifferentiated embryonic stem cells is that they have a notable tendency to form tumors. If you want to find a cure do it God's way and that won't be by farming embryos. Why mention George Bush's opposition to embryonic stem cell research. That research is going on in this country by private companies. chris shoffner, NC,USA, USA The stem cells used in this project were not embryotic stem cells. President Bush does not oppose stem cell research only public funding of embryotic stem cell research. There has been successful stem cell research using the type of cells in this project (adult stem cells) To date there is no research proving that embryotic stem cells are better than adult stem cells. Willa, lowville, NY Once again another cure brought on by adult stem cell research. I note the author's spin by throwing in the uterly worhtles commet of "But research using the most versatile kind of stem cells -- those acquired from human embryos -- is currently opposed by powerful critics, including President Bush" fails to take into consideration the fact that ESCR has only produuced more virult forms ocf cancer and not one cure. While adult stem cell research has helped the blind see, the lame walk and the infirmed live mroe healthy lives. Sam H, Manhattan, Kansas Embryonic stem cell research has nothing to do with a...
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