Stem cells used to regenerate healthy human liver tissue
Mar 27, 2007 - 1:12:54 AM
, Reviewed by: Dr. Rashmi Yadav
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âOur study suggests that liver stem cells harvested from the patientâs own bone marrow can further augment and accelerate the liverâs natural capacity to regenerate itself."
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By Radiological Society of North America,
[RxPG] For the first time, researchers have used adult bone marrow stem cells to regenerate healthy human liver tissue, according to a study published in the April issue of the journal Radiology.
When large, fast-growing cancers invade the liver, some patients are unable to undergo surgery, because removing the cancerous tissue would leave too little liver to support the body.
Researchers at Heinrich-Heine-University in Düsseldorf, Germany, used adult bone marrow stem cells to help quickly regenerate healthy liver tissue, enabling patients to eventually undergo a surgical resection.
âOur study suggests that liver stem cells harvested from the patientâs own bone marrow can further augment and accelerate the liverâs natural capacity to regenerate itself,â said Günther Fürst, M.D., co-author and professor of radiology.
In the study, researchers compared the results of portal vein embolization (PVE), a technique currently used to help regenerate liver tissue, to a combination of PVE and an injection of bone marrow stem cells into the liver.
PVE blocks blood flow to the diseased portion of the liver and diverts blood to the organâs healthy tissue, promoting liver growth. Bone marrow stem cells extracted from the patientâs hip bone and injected into the liver also help the liver regenerate.
The study included 13 patients with large central liver malignancies who were unable to undergo surgery because resection would leave less than 25 percent of their total liver volume.
Six of the patients underwent both PVE and injection of bone marrow stem cells. Seven patients underwent only PVE. Computed tomography (CT) scans were performed before and up to five weeks after PVE to determine the degree of liver growth.
Patients who received the combination of PVE and stem cell injection had double the liver growth rate and gain in liver volume, compared with those who underwent PVE alone. As a result, the patients who received the combined treatment were able to undergo surgery an average of 18 days sooner than patients who received PVE only.
âOur research demonstrates that stem cells are a powerful adjunct to PVE for patients undergoing surgical resection,â said Jan Schulte am Esch, M.D., co-author and surgery staff member. âBased on our results, we also believe that adult stem cell administration may be a promising therapy for regenerating livers damaged by other chronic and acute diseases.â
The researchers are currently embarking on a randomized controlled trial of the therapy.
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About Dr. Rashmi Yadav
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This news story has been reviewed by Dr. Rashmi Yadav before its publication on RxPG News website. Dr. Rashmi Yadav, MBBS, is a senior editor for RxPG News. In her position she is responsible for managing special correspondents and the surgery section of the website. Her areas of special interest include cardiothoracic surgery and interventional radiology.
RxPG News is committed to promotion and implementation of Evidence Based Medical Journalism in all channels of mass media including internet.
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Additional information about the news article
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Radiology is a monthly scientific journal devoted to clinical radiology and allied sciences. The journal is edited by Anthony V. Proto, M.D., School of Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Va. Radiology is owned and published by the Radiological Society of North America, Inc. (RSNA.org/radiologyjnl)
The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) is an association of more than 40,000 radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and related scientists committed to promoting excellence in radiology through education and by fostering research, with the ultimate goal of improving patient care. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Ill. (RSNA.org)
âEmbolization and CD133+ Bone Marrow Stem Cells for Liver Regeneration.â Collaborating with Prof. Fürst and Dr. Schulte am Esch on this paper were L. Benjamin Fritz, M.D., Ludger W. Poll, M.D., Stefan B. Hosch, M.D., Michael Klein, M.D., Erhard Godehardt, M.D., Andreas Krieg, M.D., Britta Wecker, Volker Stoldt, M.D., Marcus Stockschläder, Claus F. Eisenberger, M.D., Ulrich Mödder, M.D., and Wolfram R. Knoefel, M.D.
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