Health

What Health Conditions Can Be Improved with Stem Cell Transplant?

Are you wondering if your ailment qualifies for treatment with a stem cell transplant? Here you can read about health conditions that can be improved with this method.

What Health Conditions Can Be Improved with Stem Cell Transplant?

One significant hope for illnesses that plagues billions worldwide is the continuous development of medical science.

As scientists uncover new treatments, they give hope to patients with diseases previously thought to lack cures. One major scientific breakthrough that holds much promise is stem cell transplant (SCT).

In particular, the stem cell transplant treatment process is a welcome development for people battling degenerative diseases.

It also can significantly improve life-threatening and other types of diseases.

This article explains all you need to know about STCs, their importance, and how it improves different conditions.

What Is a Stem Cell Transplant?

Stem cells are unique body cells that are produced especially in the bone marrow and then put into the bloodstream.

However, medical conditions, chemotherapy, and radiation treatment can destroy an individual’s stem cells. Hence, the transplantation of these cells is necessary as it helps infuse new and healthy stem cells into the body.

Stem cell therapy is a medical procedure through which a patient receives healthy and viable stem cells in a therapeutic amount. Medical practitioners may source them from different sources including the blood or bone marrow.

For example, doctors extract mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from sources such as adipose tissue, umbilical cord tissue (Wharton’s jelly), or amniotic fluid (the fluid surrounding a fetus).

Notably, they don’t always come from a donor. Instead, doctors can get them from the patient – an autologous transplant.

However, these healthy stem cells must be harvested and cultured, which can take up to several weeks. Thus, it is not suitable for cases where treatment is to be started immediately.

Also, where these cells are from a sibling or an unrelated donor, it’s an allogeneic transplant, while an SCT from an identical twin is a syngeneic transplant.

How Is the Procedure Performed?

Medical experts perform stem cell therapy by extracting tissue samples and preparing cell-based drugs to transfer them to the patient.

There are five vital steps in the stem cell transplant process. We explain them below.

Medical tests and evaluations: This stage assesses the donor and donee’s general medical condition.
Harvesting: The doctors extract the needed type of cells from tissues derived from your body or the donee.
Processing: This involves cultivating extracted stem cells until achieving the drug for the therapy (may up to millions of cells).
Transplanting: This is the transfer of a cell-based product (transplant) to the patient’s body. This involves different types of cell product administration, according to the doctor’s requirements.
Recovery. On average, a patient will need some days to recover after the procedure. You may prefer to remain in the hospital under medical supervision during this period. The recovery period is vital to allow your new stem cells to adapt to your body and start their therapeutic work within damaged areas.

Why Use Stem Cell Transplant?

In the human body, stem cells are able to generate healthy cells to replace diseased or damaged cells in a natural way and modulate the immune system.

Thus, SCT is an excellent choice if you have a disease that is accompanied by inflammation or have no other options that can cure it.

Furthermore, this kind of therapy is safe, quick, effective, and offers long-term results. With SCT, you can:

Avoid surgery and its complications
Regain and increase functionality and mobility
Enjoy rejuvenated joints, tissues, and ligaments
Reverse injuries, and
Avoid anesthesia if you use donated cells.

What Are the Effects of Stem Cells?

Essentially, mesenchymal stem cells exploit their self-renewal and anti-inflammatory features to repair diseased body tissues.

When MSCs are divided into a therapeutic number of cells in the laboratory, doctors inject them into the patient’s body where they find injured areas they’ll work on. This could be joints, muscles, or nerve tissue.

After this transplant, the cell is attracted to diseased or inflamed cells. Then, through paracrine effects, MSCs signal the existing cells to change their behavior.

Consequently, the existing cells respond by regenerating the diseased cells and reducing inflammations.

What Health Conditions Can Be Treated With Transplantation of Stem Cells?

Doctors use this kind of transplantation to treat several diseases. Some of them include:

Myocardial infarction
Stroke
Meniscus injury
Limb ischemia
Graft-versus-host disease
Osteoporosis
Auto-immune disorders

What Results Can Be Achieved?

The table below illustrates how cell-based therapy can impact some diseases we mentioned. It also shows the effects of bone-marrow cell transplants on some diseases.

Medical Condition	Possible Outcomes
*Cardiac disorders*	Improve heart condition by inducing the growth of new blood vessels and creating new resident cardiomiocytes
*Leukemia*	Hematopoietic stem cells enable recovery and maintain remission
*Osteoporosis*	Increase bone regeneration and decreases inflammation and pain
*Stroke*	Enhance brain function
*Orthopedic diseases*	Using MSCs reduce pain, encourage cartilage repair and quality, and improve performance
*Spinal cord injury*	Promote the recovery of motor functions (movements)
*Multiple sclerosis*	Stall the disease progression by restoring damaged neuronal cells
*Huntington’s disease*	Improve behavioral, metabolic, cognitive and anatomical functions
*Neurological diseases*	Using MSCs prevent apoptosis and cell death in nerve tissues, encourages recovery in motor and sensory functions
*Alzheimer’s disease*	Possibly restores cognitive function gradually

Note that there is no definite pattern for improvement or recovery after an SCT. The ailment, the person’s overall well-being, and the type of transplant determine how quickly and how well they recover.

Overview of Clinical Trials and Research on Stem Cell Transplant in Patients

Multiple clinical trials are going on around the world to fully discover and exploit the full potential of this kind of regenerative treatment.

These trials have focused on extending current applications of SCT by examining its effects on different diseases, from cardiac problems to blood disorders.

Researchers have also raised several issues in the field of regenerative medicine. For example, Wojciech Zakrzewski, Maciej Dobrzyński, Maria Szymonowicz, and Zbigniew Rybak extensively discussed stem cell therapy in their article “Stem Cells: Past, Present, and Future”. They discussed the history of this therapy and its current applications. The authors also examined the future uses of this method.

Notably, the researchers mentioned that medical practitioners could induce stem cells to become a specific cell type.

Thus, doctors can make these cells become the specific damaged or destroyed cells your body needs to repair. In addition, the research discussed the extraction of stem cells from the teeth.

Finally, athletes can benefit from cell-based therapy. First, the researchers analyzed the downsides of arthroplasty in treating osteoarthritis.

Then, they stated that SCT is a viable alternative for regenerating damaged tendons by athletes.

Final Thoughts

Some patients may need SCT for various reasons. For some, their own stem cells were destroyed during fighting the disease and medical procedures.

Conversely, a transplant can cure an existing health condition for others by activating their own regeneration mechanisms. Therefore, it’s great news that science can correct such medical conditions, even fatal ones.

By now, this treatment remains as expensive as ever. This is partly due to the aspects of creating a cell-based product, and partly due to the high level of service in clinics that offer such treatment.

Just as an example, center Swiss Medica guarantees stem cell therapy with hotel-like conditions to achieve your best medical benefit.

Do you have any questions or inhibitions regarding stem cell transplant? Then, we’ll love to hear from you in the comments.

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Health

Report Causes Pfizer Stock to Climb Approximately $1 Billion Acquired by Starboard

(VOR News) – According to a rumor that activist investor Pfizer Starboard Value has taken a holding in the struggling pharmaceutical business that is expected to be worth around one billion dollars, the stock of Pfizer (PFE) is on the increase in premarket trading on Monday.

This comes after the report was made public. The report was made available to the general public following this. Starboard Value was successful in moving forward with the acquisition of the position.

Starboard is said to have approached Ian Read, a former chief executive officer of Pfizer, and Frank D’Amelio, a former chief financial officer, in order to seek assistance with its goals of boosting the performance of the company, according to the Wall Street Journal. Read and D’Amelio are both former Pfizer executives.

The purpose of this is to facilitate the accomplishment of its objectives, which include enhancing the overall performance of the firm.

In their previous jobs, D’Amelio and Read were chief financial officers.

It is stated in the report that the hedge fund is of the opinion that Pfizer, which is currently being managed by Albert Bourla, who succeeded Read as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in 2019, does not demonstrate the same level of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) discipline that Read did. Bourla took over for Read in 2019. Read was succeeded by Bourla in the year 2019.

Pfizer, a multinational pharmaceutical conglomerate, has made substantial investments in the acquisition of more companies that are involved in the research and development of cancer medicines.

These businesses have been acquired for billions of dollars. The biotechnology company Seagen, which was acquired by Pfizer in the previous year for a price of $43 billion, is included in this category. One of the businesses that can be classified as belonging to this category is Seagen.

In spite of the fact that the S&P 500 Index experienced a 21% increase in 2024.

No major trading occurred in Pfizer stock that year.

Due to the fact that the demand for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccines fell after the firm reached its pandemic peak in 2021, the share price of the corporation has decreased by over fifty percent since that time.

This drop has occurred ever since the company’s shares reached their maximum peak, which was during the time that this decline occurred. Not only have they not changed at all, but they have also remained essentially stable. This is in contrast to the S&P 500, which has gained 21% since the beginning of this year.

Recently, the corporation was forced to take a hit when it decided to recall all of the sickle cell illness medications that it had distributed all over the world.

Fears that the prescription could lead patients to experience severe agony and possibly even death were the impetus for the decision to recall the product. In spite of the fact that Pfizer’s stock is increasing by almost three percent as a result of the news that followed the company’s decision, this is the circumstance that has come about.

SOURCE: IPN

Health

New Study Reveals Drinking Soda Pop Increases the Risk of Stroke

If you drink too much soda, fruit juice and coffee, beware!

A recent report from global research indicates that excessive consumption of coffee or soda pop is associated with an increased risk of stroke, although the intake of black and green tea is correlated with a reduced risk. Excessive consumption of soda pop or coffee warrants caution!

Recent research indicates that it may substantially elevate the risk of stroke.

Consuming four cups of coffee daily elevates the risk of stroke, according to studies, although ingesting 3-4 cups of black or green tea daily typically offers protection against stroke. Additionally, consume more coffee; it may reduce your risk of mortality.

Recent findings from global research studies co-led by the University of Galway and McMaster University, alongside an international consortium of stroke researchers, indicate that soda, encompassing both sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened variants such as diet or zero sugar, is associated with a 22 percent heightened risk of stroke. The risk escalated significantly with the consumption of two or more of these beverages daily.

Stroke Risk Fizzy Drinks and Soda Pop

The correlation between fizzy drinks consumption and stroke risk was most pronounced in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South America. Women exhibit the most elevated risk of stroke from bleeding (intracranial hemorrhage) associated with fruit juice beverages. Consuming over 7 cups of water daily diminishes the likelihood of stroke due to a clot.

Researchers observed that numerous items advertised as fruit juice are derived from concentrates and have added sugars and preservatives, potentially negating the advantages often associated with fresh fruit and instead elevating stroke risk.

Fruit juice beverages were associated with a 37 percent heightened risk of stroke resulting from bleeding (intracranial hemorrhage). Consuming two of these beverages daily increases the risk thrice.

Consuming over four cups of coffee daily elevates the risk of stroke by 37 percent, although lower consumption levels do not correlate with stroke risk. Conversely, tea consumption was associated with an 18-20 percent reduction in stroke risk. Additionally, consuming 3-4 cups daily of black tea, such as Breakfast and Earl Grey varieties, excluding green and herbal teas, was associated with a 29 percent reduced risk of stroke.

Consuming 3-4 cups of green tea daily was associated with a 27 percent reduction in stroke risk. Notably, the addition of milk may diminish or inhibit the advantageous effects of antioxidants present in tea. The lower risk of stroke associated with tea consumption was negated for individuals who added milk.

Disclaimer: This article is intended solely for informational reasons and should not be considered a replacement for professional medical counsel. Consistently consult your physician regarding any inquiries pertaining to a medical problem.

Starbucks Faces Sales Decline Amid Price Fatigue and Rising Competition

Starbucks Faces Sales Decline Amid Price Fatigue and Rising Competition

Health

Following a Diagnosis of Breast Cancer, What Else Should You Know?

(VOR News) – Even though breast cancer affects one in eight American women, receiving a diagnosis can make a woman feel isolated.

Experts in breast cancer from the American College of Physicians (ACS) advise patients on how to manage their disease so that they may better cope with this awful information.

First, the kind and stage of breast cancer dictates the course of your care.

In addition to immunotherapy and chemotherapy, there are various surgical options available for the treatment of breast cancer.

Women of African descent are disproportionately affected by triple-negative breast cancer, an extremely aggressive form of the disease that has never proven easy to treat.

According to the American Cancer Society, pembrolizumab (Keytruda), an immunotherapy, has been shown to be helpful when combined with chemotherapy and is currently the recommended course of treatment for certain combinations of triple-negative breast cancer.

In her presentation, Dr. Katharine Yao said, “It’s really important that the patient and physician discuss the patient’s preferences and values when deciding what type of treatment to pursue and that they have an honest, individualized discussion with their care team.”

She is currently responsible for developing breast cancer treatment recommendations for more than 575 hospitals and institutions nationwide in her role as chair of the American College of Surgeons’ National Accreditation Program for Breast Institutions (NAPBC).

Yao, vice chair of research at Endeavor Health NorthShore Hospitals in New York, pointed out that each decision made about a patient’s treatment plan should take her preferences and diagnosis into consideration.

She ought to think about whether she would prefer a mastectomy—a surgical procedure that involves removing the entire breast with or without reconstruction—or a lumpectomy, which involves a surgical procedure that spares part of the breast tissue.

She stated that “the breast cancer you have may be very different from the breast cancer you hear about in your neighbor, colleague, or friend” in a press release issued by the American Cancer Society (ACS).

“Consider that while discussing breast cancer with others.”

Throughout your journey, it is critical that you look after your emotional health because having breast cancer may have a detrimental impact on your mental health.

“Getting a cancer diagnosis does not mean that everything in your life stops to be normal.” Director of the Fellowship in the Diseases of the Breast program at the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at the University of Arkansas and state head of the American Cancer Society Commission on Cancer for Arkansas, Dr. Daniela Ochoa She thinks adding the burden of a cancer diagnosis and treatment to all the other pressures in life may be taxing.

“Managing stress and emotional health is vital component of a treatment plan.”

Ochoa recommends clinically trained psychologists and social workers who have assisted people in coping with cancer to anyone receiving treatment. Learning coping techniques might also be facilitated by joining cancer support groups or cancer wellness initiatives.

Breast cancer specialists say your care team is crucial.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) defines comprehensive care as having support at every stage of the procedure from surgeons, oncologists, patient navigators, nurses, social workers, psychologists, and other specialists.

After receiving a breast cancer diagnosis, women should see a surgeon or medical oncologist to explore their options; nevertheless, treatment shouldn’t be discontinued after just one appointment or after surgery is over.

Additionally, you can ask trustworthy friends or family members to accompany you to appointments and aid you with research or notes. They could serve as a network of support for you.

Yao stated in his talk that “one of the most important things is that patients should search out a team they have confidence in, that they trust will have their back when they need it, and a team they feel they can get access to and that will help them when they are in need.”

SOURCE: MP