Search Immortality Topics:

Page 30«..1020..29303132..40..»


Category Archives: Diseases

Surgeons Urge Caution: Stem Cell Treatments Untested in Aesthetic Surgery

Doctors Haeck, Eaves, and Rohrich write joint ASAPS/ASPS statement calling for more research into stem cell facelift and stem cell breast augmentation.

Dallas, TX (PRWEB) February 22, 2012

There is little evidence to support the safety and effectiveness of procedures, equipment and treatments that have been advertised using adult stem cells for aesthetic reconstruction, including plastic surgery and facial rejuvenation, according to physicians writing in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

Dr. Rod J. Rohrich, chairman of the Department of Plastic Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center and editor-in-chief of the journal, published a position statement on “stem cell facelifts” and “stem cell breast augmentation,” also known as “natural breast augmentation.” Dr. Felmont F. Eaves III of Chapel Hill, N.C., and Dr. Phillip C. Haeck of Seattle, Wash.,collaborated on the statement on behalf of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

“There are encouraging data from studies in laboratories to suggest that the use of adult stem cells is a very promising field and may produce beneficial medical therapies to treat a variety of diseases,” the doctors said in the statement. They emphasized that there is a lack of consistency in the way stem cell facelift procedures are performed, and pointed out that many procedures are being advertised by physicians who are not board-certified for this type of treatment, and devices being sold for aesthetic stem cell treatments have not been approved for human use in the U.S.

In the report, the doctors encourage their peers to continue reporting clinic results and experimental research to peer-reviewed plastic surgery journals to both promote good science and to foster safety and best practices for stem cell use in aesthetic procedures. “Much more research needs to be conducted before any definitive statements can be made,” the report said. “[Until then,] stem cell based procedures should be performed in compliance with FDA regulatory guidelines.”

Dr. Rohrich said many of the advertisements claiming stem cells can aid in restoring facial and body youthfulness come from outside the U.S. “Further direct, approved clinical research is needed to validate those claims,” he said, “but the future is potentially bright for the use of adult stem cells in both plastic surgery and facial rejuvenation, as well as in medical procedures, such as restoring nerve and brain damage resulting from trauma or cancer, as well as reversing the severe effects of auto immune disease.”

To read the complete joint ASAPS/ASPS position statement on stem cell use in aesthetic surgery, including stem cell facelifts and natural breast augmentation, visit the ASPS, at their website.

About Rod J. Rohrich, M.D., F.A.C.S.
Dr. Rod J. Rohrich holds the Betty and Warren Woodward Chair in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas. He also holds the UT Southwestern Medical Center Crystal Charity Ball Distinguished Chair in Plastic Surgery. He is a graduate of the Baylor College of Medicine with high honors, with residencies at the University of Michigan Medical Center and fellowships at the Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard (hand/microsurgery) and Oxford University (pediatric plastic surgery). He has served as president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. He repeatedly has been selected by his peers as one of America's best doctors, and twice has received one of his profession's highest honors, the Plastic Surgery Educational Foundation Distinguished Service Award, which recognizes his contributions to education in his field. Dr. Rohrich participates in and has led numerous associations and councils for the advancement of plastic and reconstructive surgery. He is a native of North Dakota. He is married to Dr. Diane Gibby, also a plastic surgeon. They live in Texas with their two children.

###

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebplastic-surgery/stem-cell-statement/prweb9217080.htm

Original post:
Surgeons Urge Caution: Stem Cell Treatments Untested in Aesthetic Surgery

Posted in Diseases | Comments Off on Surgeons Urge Caution: Stem Cell Treatments Untested in Aesthetic Surgery

Stem Cell Action Coalition Opposes Virginia Personhood Bill

To: HEALTH, MEDICAL AND POLITICAL EDITORS

WASHINGTON, Feb. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Stem Cell Action Coalition opposes Virginia House Bill No.1, the so-called Virginia "personhood bill." The Virginia Senate Committee on Education and Health is scheduled to take the matter up this week.

The language of the personhood bill states, in part, that the laws of Virginia "shall be interpreted and construed to acknowledge on behalf of unborn children at every stage of development all of the rights, privileges and immunities available to other persons, citizens and residents." The bill further states "unborn children shall include the offspring of human beings from the moment of conception until birth at every stage of biological development."

HB 1 arguably would apply to every aspect of Virginia law thus profoundly impacting inheritance, adoption, guardianship, civil and criminal liability by according the same rights as adults and children to a single cell.

The personhood bill would surely interfere with reproductive and related rights of women and couples along several fronts. These interferences include making it exceedingly difficult for couples in Virginia to seek in vitro fertilization as a means of creating families and donating for research IVF-created embryos not needed for implantation or not sufficiently healthy for implantation. Moreover, the law would prevent the pursuit of medical research in Virginia that utilizes human embryonic stem cells.

In this twisted new world, Virginia researchers deriving embryonic stem cells from donated embryos might be charged with capital crimes, even murder. Couples donating embryos to research might be designated as accessories to these crimes. Microscopic embryos, consisting of a few cells in lab dishes or frozen in IVF clinics might be designated as wards of the state and by mandate have legal guardians appointed on their behalf.

Human embryonic stem cell research has been described by scientists as the "gold standard" for those seeking to develop cures based on stem cell technology for many diseases and maladies such as Parkinson's, ALS, diabetes, MS, macular degeneration and other causes of blindness, spinal cord injuries, and other medical conditions for which there is no known cure.

Bernard Siegel, J.D., spokesperson for the Coalition and executive director of the Genetics Policy Institute commented, "It is a sad day indeed when the Commonwealth of Virginia should become an outpost for extremism by impeding potentially lifesaving scientific research. Thomas Jefferson would be appalled. The wise voters of Colorado (twice) and Mississippi overwhelmingly rejected personhood amendments to their state constitutions.

The profound implications of the personhood bill cannot be wished away by its sponsors. Passage of this bill would be an affront to couples trying to avail themselves of modern infertility treatments, stem cell researchers targeting cures and to all Virginians suffering from chronic and life threatening disease. Passage of HB 1 is akin to crushing hope.

Human embryonic stem cell research holds the promise of discovering the root causes of disease, serves as a tool for drug discovery, and will surely lead to regenerative medicines and cell therapies for repairing or replacing damaged tissues and organs.

Microscopic cells in a lab dish, that by a couples' decision, will never be implanted in a womb, should not be defined as 'people'," Siegel continued.

HB 1 represents a concerted move by opponents of all forms of early termination of pregnancy and medical research involving human embryos to attempt to pass laws to define "person" as the being that comes into existence at conception. In addition to Virginia, similar efforts to pass "personhood" legislation are underway in Oklahoma, Mississippi and in other states.

The Stem Cell Action Coalition has 75 nonprofit affiliated organizations including patient groups, medical philanthropies, scientific and medical societies and public interest organizations all dedicated to advancing scientifically meritorious and ethically responsible research.

The Stem Cell Action Coalition serves as an engine to unite the pro-cures community. It recognizes that human embryonic stem cell research must be a national public health priority at all branches and levels of government, not only as a matter of the medical health of the individuals who comprise the United States, but also as a matter of national financial health. The Coalition sponsors a web site http://www.stemcellaction.org and can be found on Twitter @StemCellAction and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/stemcellaction.

SOURCE The Stem Cell Action Coalition

-0-

More here:
Stem Cell Action Coalition Opposes Virginia Personhood Bill

Posted in Diseases | Comments Off on Stem Cell Action Coalition Opposes Virginia Personhood Bill

Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS): Progress and Promise in Stem Cell Research – Video

29-10-2010 14:40 CIRM has funded the ALS Disease Team led by scientists at UC San Diego, The Salk Institute, and Life Technologies Corporation who aim to bring a human embryonic stem cell based ALS therapy to clinical trials within four years. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a progressive motor neuron disorder. Most people with ALS die within 3 to 5 years from the onset of symptoms. For more information visit CIRM's ALS disease fact sheet (www.cirm.ca.gov/ALS_facts) and The ALS Association website (www.alsa.org)

Visit link:
Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS): Progress and Promise in Stem Cell Research - Video

Posted in Diseases | Comments Off on Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS): Progress and Promise in Stem Cell Research – Video

Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS): Progress and Promise in Stem Cell Research – Video

29-10-2010 14:40 CIRM has funded the ALS Disease Team led by scientists at UC San Diego, The Salk Institute, and Life Technologies Corporation who aim to bring a human embryonic stem cell based ALS therapy to clinical trials within four years. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a progressive motor neuron disorder. Most people with ALS die within 3 to 5 years from the onset of symptoms. For more information visit CIRM's ALS disease fact sheet (www.cirm.ca.gov/ALS_facts) and The ALS Association website (www.alsa.org)

Visit link:
Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS): Progress and Promise in Stem Cell Research - Video

Posted in Diseases | Comments Off on Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS): Progress and Promise in Stem Cell Research – Video

Stem Cells: applications for understanding brain function and disease – Video

22-11-2010 14:24 The existence of stem cells in the adult brain and their possible functions will be discussed as well as how human embryonic Stem Cells and induced Pluripotent Stem Cells can be used to model human disease. Fred H. Gage, Ph.D. (NAS/IOM) is the head of the Laboratory of Genetics at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, the Vi and John Adler Chair for Research on Age-Related Neurodegenerative Diseases and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Neurosciences, UCSD, La Jolla.

Read the rest here:
Stem Cells: applications for understanding brain function and disease - Video

Posted in Diseases | Comments Off on Stem Cells: applications for understanding brain function and disease – Video

Stem Cell Treatment Lung Disease – Video

22-01-2011 12:29 http://www.StemCellTreatment.org This is Zebiba Shekhia, a patient with lung disease that received stem cell treatment for lung disease at American Stem Cell and Anti-Aging Center. After receiving her stem cell treatment lung disease she is now breathing much better and feels fantasitc! Go to your website for more information and find out how ASCAAC can help you!

Read the original here:
Stem Cell Treatment Lung Disease - Video

Posted in Diseases | Comments Off on Stem Cell Treatment Lung Disease – Video