What Are the Benefits of Adult Stem Cells?

Embryonic stem cell research continues to engender heated controversy, but research and experimental treatments using an adult's own stem cells to treat serious medical conditions and degenerative diseases is very promising and hopeful for sufferers, with far less press coverage.

Significance

• Harvesting adult stem cells for adult stem cell research (ASCR) does not harm the donor or patient, does not use human embryos, and has proved to be very effective in treating a number of medical conditions and degenerative diseases.

Types of Stem Cells

• Adult stem cells used in various treatments have been harvested successfully from the patient's own circulating blood (peripheral blood stem cells), fat cells (adipose tissue), skin (iPS - induced pluripotent stem cells), placenta, umbilical cord, liver and bone marrow.

Effects

• Because stem cells are considered the primal or "master" cells of the human body, they can regenerate healthy cells in damaged or diseased tissue (transdifferentiation). When adult stem cells are harvested directly from the patient who needs them, the body does not reject them.

Potential

• As the number of patients needing an organ transplant is so much higher than the amount of donor organs available, using one's own adult stem cells as replacement cells to grow new organ tissue can effectively address that need, with no rejection complications.

Successful Treatments

• Peripheral blood stem cells have been used successfully in treating systemic lupus and sclerosis, Wegener’s granulomatosis and amyopathic dermatomyositis. Bone marrow stem cells have been used successfully in treating diabetes, cardiovascular disease, leukemia, lymphoma and healing a broken jaw bone.