It is well known that stem cells found in a newborn baby’s cord blood are rich in (hematopoietic) stem cells, which has been used to treat and cure over 80 different blood and immune disorders and cancers. But what about the stem cells from umbilical cord tissue? Both Cord blood and Cord Tissue are rich …
Continue ReadingFirst Woman Cured of HIV Using Cord Blood Stem Cells
A woman of mixed race becomes the third patient in the world to be cured of HIV, and the first one to do it using a cord blood stem cell transplant. On Tuesday February 15th, the case was presented at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. She received a combination of adult bone marrow …
Continue ReadingStem Cell Research & COVID-19
On May 8th, 2020, Pluristem announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved their PLX cell therapy as an Investigational New Drug (IND) for a Phase II clinical trial in the treatment of severe COVID-19 cases complicated by Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). The study will be a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group …
Continue ReadingSTEM CELL THERAPY: Update on Patients Treated with PLX cells for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) associated with COVID-19
On May 14, 2020, Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. published follow-up data on patients treated under their compassionate use program. These patients were all being treated for with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) associated with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and in intensive care units requiring mechanical ventilation. As of the publication date, 18 patients have been treated with …
Continue ReadingStem Cells: Placental Derived Cells Used in Multinational Clinical Trial for the Treatment of severe COVID-19
On Saturday, April 11th, Holy Name Hospital of Bergen County, NJ, administered PLX cells to a 49-year-old male who has been in their ICU since March 20th. PLacental eXpanded (PLX) cells are mesenchymal-like adherent stromal cells derived from the placenta after delivery and were being studied for their therapeutic uses in several disease processes. This …
Continue ReadingClinical Trial Using Stem Cells to Treat COVID-19
Stem cells are undifferentiated “blueprint” cells that are being studied in the repair of damaged tissue from a wide range of diseases. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are a type of stem cells that can be found in umbilical cord tissue. They have also been isolated in minute quantities from adult bone marrow. These stem cells …
Continue ReadingBirth Plans and Options
Where will your baby come into the world (and into your arms)? Will it be in your own bed at home? In a high-tech hospital birthing room? In a family-focused birthing center? How will you be doing that birthing? In water? While squatting? On your hands and knees? How about the environment around you? Do …
Continue ReadingEpidurals – What are they? Are they for you?
Whether you’ve known from day one that you’d be asking for an epidural or have your heart set on a medicine-free birth, here’s the lowdown on epidurals and how they can take some of the pain out of labor and delivery. Remember that we are all individuals and our different thresholds of pain span the …
Continue ReadingHow Long Can Cord Blood & Tissue Be Stored?
This common question comes up often when researching cord blood banking. Why do some banks only offer, 18, 20 or 25 years when other banks offer lifetime banking? Here’s what we know: Cord blood is rich in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). These cord blood stem cells produce the cellular ingredients necessary for the blood and …
Continue ReadingCord Blood Stem Cells Help Young Boy with Tetra Spastic Cerebral Palsy
Tomas’s mom developed pre-eclampsia, a hypertension disorder sometimes developed during pregnancy which can cause serious health risks for both mom and baby, during her fifth month of pregnancy. This high blood pressure pregnancy complication affects kidney and liver function and when left untreated, can lead to blood clotting failure, fluid buildup in the lungs, seizures …
Continue Reading