DETROIT Physicians at Henry Ford Hospital are the first in Michigan in a new national research study to investigate treating a recent heart attack with a patients own stem cells to preserve heart muscle function.

Stem cell therapy offers new potential approaches in the treatment of acute heart attack patients to prevent further damage to heart muscle and improve function, said Gerald Koenig, M.D., a cardiologist and researcher at Henry Ford. Current standard treatment options only limit the weakening of the heart. This is why we are studying stem cell therapy, which looks very promising, but it is still an investigation, not an established treatment.

The body has a mechanism to repair itself. When a heart attack occurs, the heart sends a distress signal to the body, which then sends repair cells to the injury site. In some cases, depending on the severity of damage, the repair is insufficient, with a poor prognosis for the patient. A dead zone of tissue develops in the heart, while the surrounding healthy heart cells are stressed as they work harder to pump blood.

The American Heart Association, with the assistance of the National Institutes of Health, reports that an average of 16 years of life may be lost due to a heart attack.

Previous studies using adult stem cells to limit heart muscle damage and improve function have had mixed success, says Dr. Koenig. Some studies have tried to do this too soon after a heart attack, and some tried the procedure at a later time.

It has been determined that theres a window of opportunity one week to 10 days after a heart attack which is the optimum time for stem cell treatment.

The type of stem cell used to treat heart muscle is critical for success, according to Dr. Koenig, as well as the number of cells infused. When the correct amount of the right cells are used in the specified timeframe, the possibility of preserving heart function is much higher.

We look for a specific stem cell that has the capability to improve the function of the heart, potentially by regenerating tissue, or as in this case, preventing the loss of heart muscle that typically continues for weeks after the heart attack, he says.

An acute heart attack can severely weaken heart muscle. Todays therapies, including balloon angioplasty and stents to reopen blocked blood vessels, and medication, have raised the survival rate for patients. However, one third of heart attack survivors has a significant amount of damage to the heart, and is at high risk to develop congestive heart failure over several years.

Retired science teacher and former principal of Cass Tech High School, Lenora Ashford, 64, of Detroit, had a heart attack in mid November.

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Henry Ford First In Michigan To Use Stem Cells To Preserve Heart Function

Facing cancer once is daunting enough, but the shock of relapse often leaves a person feeling overwhelmed and depressed. Now three separate studies seem to confirm scientists' suspicions that so-called cancer stem cells drive the growth and regrowth of tumors. If true, this changes the whole approach to cancer therapy.

For years scientists have debated the existence of cancer stem cells, which exhibit stem cell characteristics by producing new tumor cells or additional cancer stem cells.

Studies are beginning to show tumors contain a small number of cancer stem cells that are often quiescent, shielding them from chemotherapy treatments that normally target and kill tumor cells.

This means after treatment and enough time, the surviving cancer stem cells divide, producing more cancer stem cells as well as differentiating into the variety of cells found in a tumor.

The ability to produce cells with varying characteristics could also help explain metastasis, the migration and adaptation of tumor cells to other organs.

The new studies produced the best evidence yet that cancer stem cells do exist in the tumors of the brain, skin, and gut of mice. One group from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas was able to mark brain tumor (glioblastoma) stem cells using a neuronal stem cell marker.

When all the tumor cells were treated with chemotherapy, the only cells that survived were the ones identified by the stem cell marker. When chemotherapy was given along with treatment to repress cancer stem cell activity, the tumors shrank.

Another scientist, Hans Clevers from the Hubrecht Institute in the Netherlands, focused on gut tumor cells. His team found a way to mark cancer stem cells in benign intestinal tumors. They then introduced a gene that would make the cancer stem cells glow the color green, which gave rise to more green-colored cancer stem cells as well as all the other types cells in that tumor. To further prove stem cells fuel tumors, Clevers triggered all the stem cells colored green to switch to either yellow, red, or blue, and they produced stem cells and tumor cells in that same color. The third study, led by Belgian scientists, did not specifically label cancer stem cells, but rather labeled individual skin tumor cells so that they could be tracked during tumor development. The tumor cells were allowed to reproduce and did so in two ways.

The majority of cells divided a few times then died out. The others continued to grow and divide, supporting the belief that a small subset of tumor cells spurs cancer growth, and these could indeed be cancer stem cells.

The more aggressive the tumor cell type, the more likely it was to produce more cells that continue to divide.

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Cancer's stem cells drive tumor growth

MARCO ISLAND, Fla., Jan. 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --Mary Holler, age 80, of Marco Island, Florida is smiling again. Mary was suffering from dementia. She felt her ability to function on a daily basis was slipping away. Now, after undergoing a successful stem cell treatment in early December 2012, Mary is more like her old self again. She no longer suffers the frustration and agitation of being told she had already asked that question several times. Peter Holler, age 82, had become very concerned that his wife of 60 years was slowly losing her memory. She had been on medications for memory loss for several years but the deterioration in her recall accelerated in the last six months. It was not unusual for him to answer the same question 4 to 5 times over the course of a day. He felt he was losing his wife right in front of his eyes. Mary's poor performance on an in-depth memory test revealed that she should be in an assisted living facility. This frightened both the Hollers and their children.

Peter Holler sought out stem cell therapy. He felt it was his wife's only option. Peter, no stranger to stem cells, had undergone a stem cell treatment for his failing heart in 2008. He had experienced great success. "Even my lung function improved dramatically," he recalls. So using the same group that he had trusted with his heart, he made arrangements to get the love of his life treated.

A track record of several successfully treated patients with dementia already existed. So the doctors knew exactly what to do. Heading the team is Dr. Hector Rosario, an interventional cardiologist and head of the stem cell program in the Dominican Republic. Dr. Zannos Grekos, Chief Science Officer for Intercellular, was present as well. "It's very exciting to be able to have such a positive impact on a disease process that otherwise has such a grim prognosis," Grekos explained.

After an activation and concentration process, stem cells collected from Mary's bone marrow were injected into her cerebral circulation. "Look at the difference," Dr. Rosario exclaimed while pointing to the before and after pictures of the brain circulation. The increase in blood vessel flow was astonishing. Since only adult stem cells from the patient are used, the political, ethical and medical issues are avoided and there is no risk of rejection.

"We're able to normalize a patient's brain function testing in 6 months after the treatment," said Grekos, commenting on the success rate of patients receiving adult stem cell therapy to reverse the effects of dementia.

Dementia is a loss of brain function that occurs with age and certain diseases. Some types of dementia are non-reversible (degenerative) but others have a vascular component, even Alzheimer's. These respond especially well to stem cell treatment.

Additional information available at Intercellular Sciences patient website - Regenocyte.

Contact: 239-333-1239

Photos: http://www.prlog.org/12053960

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Stem Cells Shown to Reverse Dementia