Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States. The most common heart problem in the United States is coronary heart disease, which often appears as a heart attack. It takes almost 600,000 lives each year.
Scientists have been working extremely hard to make use of stem cell therapies to treat patients with heart problems. and Today, the researchers announced that they are closer than ever before to treat heart disease using stem cells.
The particular kind of cells used in this research are called mesenchymal stem cells, and come from adults, not embryos.
The researchers are using a mesenchymal stem cell therapy that is marketed by Osiris Therapeutics Inc. under the name Prochymal. The drug, which consists of stem cells from donor bone marrow, gets injected into the vein. The cells then travel through the bloodstream and take up residence in the heart. CNN explains.
“We’re looking on the time frame here of five years, in the best-case scenario, to have approved cardiac stem cell therapies”. Dr. Joshua Hare
The study is still in Clinical trials and its promissing becuase its very rare that our body rejects its own stem cells.
Via – CNN