Writing in The Palo Alto Online News September 20, 2011, Sue Dremann reports that the first patient in the western United States to get embryonic stem cells to treat paralysis underwent treatment at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center Saturday (Sept. 17), according to a statement by Stanford University School of Medicine.
Stanford School of Medicine and Santa Clara Valley are working together on the research, which could potentially restore functions to people with stroke, brain injury, Parkinson’s disease and other devastating neurological disorders.
The medical centers have enrolled the fourth participant in the nation’s first trial of cells derived from human embryonic stem cells. The FDA-approved trial is meant to test the safety of the cells in up to 10 people with recent spinal-cord injuries at seven trial sites across the United States.
Stanford neurosurgeon Gary Steinberg, M.D., implanted the cells. Three other patients have previously received the surgically delivered cells: two at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta beginning in October 2010, and one at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago in May 2011.
The Stanford/Santa Clara Valley patient is the first person to receive the therapy west of the Mississippi, Stanford researchers said.
Stephen McKenna, M.D., chief of the rehabilitation center at Santa Clara Valley, stated,
“It has been an extraordinarily collaborative process at every step, from developing the screening process and identifying possible patients to evaluating these patients for surgery. Although it’s been an intensive commitment of resources, we understand the importance of advancing new therapies for patients,” he said.
The trial is being run by Geron Corp. of Menlo Park, Calif., which developed and manufactures the cells being tested. In May, Geron received a $25 million grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to continue and extend the trial to include a greater proportion of spinal-cord injuries.
“When the people of California voted in favor of Proposition 71, they did so with the hope of seeing stem-cell-based therapies for chronic disease and injuries. This first California patient to participate in Geron’s landmark spinal cord injury trial is a major step toward fulfilling that hope,” said Jonathan Thomas, chair of the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine governing board.
Researchers at Geron collaborated with Hans Keirstead and his laboratory team at UC-Irvine to develop a way to coax human embryonic stem cells to become a mixture of cells that include oligodendrocyte precursors.
Following the surgery the patient entered an intensive inpatient rehabilitation program. Researchers will now monitor the patient for any adverse effects to confirm that the cells are safe for use in humans.
“In the future, cellular therapies such as those used today will open new hopes for a cure to catastrophic neurological injuries,” McKenna said.
Enhancing the rehabilitation process the HandTutor, ArmTutor, LegTutor and 3DTutor have proven to be successful in restoring full use of the affected joints for brain injury, stroke, Parkinson’s disease and many other neurological disorders.The newly developed Tutor devices have become a key system in neuromuscular rehabilitation and physical therapy. These innovative devices implement an impairment based program with augmented feedback and encourage motor learning through intensive active exercises. The Tutors are challenging and motivating and allow for repetitive training tailored to the patient’s performance. The system also includes objective quantitative evaluations that provide the therapist information to customize the most suitable rehabilitation program to the patient’s ability. Currently part of the rehabilitation program of leading U.S. and foreign hospitals the Tutors are also used in clinics and at home through the use of telerehabilitation. The Tutor devices are adaptable for children and adults.
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