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Total views: 8708 August 2013 09:32:54 AM Writer: Jazmin S. Camero, Media Relations Service-PRIB Send Feedback

A bill establishing a government agency tasked to handle the accreditation and licensing of stem cell therapy practitioners has been filed at the House of Representatives.

Rep. Eufranio Eriguel (2nd District, La Union), author of House Bill 212, said with the proper government intervention, stem cell practice might be enhanced and made accessible to the public while also regulating the people and institutions involved in its practice.

Eriguel said the bill seeks to intensify stem cell research and therapy in the country by conducting research and studies under established standards of open scientific exchange, peer review, and public oversight.

Eriguel said the past decade has seen stem cell science reach new heights and has been allegedly proven effective in treating diseases such as strokes, autism, Parkinson's diseases, diabetes, spinal cord injuries and a host of other ailments.

"Stem cell science has been in existence for almost half a century and is already the standard of care in certain procedures such as bone marrow transplants. Diseases once considered as incurable are responding well to stem cell treatment and are restoring hope to patients who thought they had lost their lives forever," Eriguel said.

Eriguel said there should be more intensive research, including clinical trials, to further discover its uses and to develop novel techniques and more promising procedures.

"There is much to be learned from stem cell therapy, its benefits and application in the cure of some of the most devastating diseases and conditions. As of now, the full promise of stem cell treatment remains unknown," Eriguel said.

Eriguel said the benefits of stem cell treatment are a major breakthrough in the field of biotechnology, "but the cost far outweighs its benefits because it is very expensive and only a few physicians are trained to do stem cell procedures here in the Philippines."

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PRESS RELEASES

Hera Nalbandian – High School Stem Cell Research Intern – Summer 2013, Video Project 2 – Video

Hera Nalbandian - High School Stem Cell Research Intern - Summer 2013, Video Project 2
Visit our Through Their Lens page for photos and more videos from students and grantees: http://www.cirm.ca.gov/instagram-CIRMStemCellLab-feed Hera Nalbandia...

By: California Institute for Regenerative Medicine

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Hera Nalbandian - High School Stem Cell Research Intern - Summer 2013, Video Project 2 - Video

Capitol Pain Austin – Dr. Schocket – Stem Cell Treatment for Low Back Pain – Video

Capitol Pain Austin - Dr. Schocket - Stem Cell Treatment for Low Back Pain
Patient discussing her stem cell treatment for low back pain performed by Dr. Schocket at Capitol Pain Institute, your Austin Pain Management Specialists.

By: Matt Schocket

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Capitol Pain Austin - Dr. Schocket - Stem Cell Treatment for Low Back Pain - Video

Whoifwhat: Stem Cell Therapy- Knees, Hip, Back, etc.! – Video

Whoifwhat: Stem Cell Therapy- Knees, Hip, Back, etc.!
It works: Now in St. Louis, New York Phily: coming to your town soon ! Using stem cells from belly fat ( got any) platelets to mark area an injection is ...

By: whoifwhat

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Whoifwhat: Stem Cell Therapy- Knees, Hip, Back, etc.! - Video

Gold 'nanoprobes' hold the key to treating killer diseases

Aug. 7, 2013 Researchers at the University of Southampton, in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Cambridge, have developed a technique to help treat fatal diseases more effectively. Dr Sumeet Mahajan and his group at the Institute for Life Sciences at Southampton are using gold nanoprobes to identify different types of cells, so that they can use the right ones in stem cell therapies.

Stem cell therapy is in its infancy, but has the potential to change the way we treat cancer and other life-threatening diseases, by replacing damaged or diseased cells with healthy ones. One of the key limitations of stem cell therapy is identifying the right cells to use for different therapies. This fundamental problem with the treatment is being tackled by this new research.

Dr Mahajan, Senior Chemistry Lecturer in Life Science Interface, says: "Stem cells could hold the key to tackling many diseases. They develop into all the various kinds of cells needed in the body -- blood, nerves and organs -- but it is almost impossible to tell them apart during their initial development without complex techniques, even with the most advanced microscopes. Up to now, scientists have used intrusive fluorescent markers to tag molecules and track each cell, a process which can render them useless for therapeutic purposes anyway. By using a technique discovered at Southampton in the 1970s, known as Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS), we have been able to look at adult stem cells on a molecular scale to distinguish one from another, meaning we can still use the cells for therapeutic purposes."

The team who discovered SERS in the 1970s found that by roughening a metal surface upon which they had placed molecules to be examined, they could increase the signal by which they could detect these molecules, by a million times. This allowed them to detect molecules in far smaller quantities than ever before. SERS has been used in many different capacities around the world and across industries, but this new research marks the first time it has been used in the field of cell therapeutics. Dr Mahajan's research could mean that stem cell and other cell-based therapies could be advanced much further than the current most common uses, such as bone marrow transplants.

Dr Mahajan comments: "Scientists studying neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease believe replenishing a patient's depleted dopamine-generating cells, may be an effective treatment. However, in order to avoid fatal complications, we must be sure we are using the right type of replacement cells, which the work we are doing at Southampton is enabling us to do. In addition, the technique can also allow us to see if drugs are working effectively in cells, and can also be used to diagnose diseases as well as treat them."

The results of Dr Mahajan's work, funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), have been published in the influential journal Nano Letters. He is collaborating with major pharmaceutical companies to further develop more effective drugs using this technique.

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Gold 'nanoprobes' hold the key to treating killer diseases

Foreign doctors need permit for stem cell therapy

MANILA - Foreign doctors are now required to secure a permit to perform stem cell therapy in the country or face criminal liability.

The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC)s Board of Medicine (BOM) made the announcement yesterday, explaining that the requirement is part of government efforts to regulate the practice of stem cell therapy in the country to ensure the safety of patients.

In a statement, the BOM said foreign physicians who intend to practice stem cell therapy here must obtain special temporary permit from the PRC to avoid being charged with medical malpractice.

Even local doctors who have aided foreign physicians illegal practice of stem cell therapy shall be also held criminally liable, the BOM added.

To secure the special temporary permit, a foreign doctor must submit proof of education and actual practice in the field of stem cell therapy and current license authenticated by the Philippine embassy and the embassy in the country of origin.

The board said physicians should have acquired the necessary education, supervised training and extensive clinical experience prior to performing the treatment. It noted that the argument that stem cell therapy falls under the general practice of medicine since it only involves injection of stem cell solution is erroneous.

As professionals, physicians should be able to conduct self-assessment and self-evaluation regarding what they can and what they should not do, they added.

The BOM also noted that stem cell therapy should be practiced only in hospitals and clinics licensed by the Department of Heath for assurance that these medical facilities have the necessary manpower and equipment to prevent risks and hazards to patients.

The board also warned patients desiring to undergo stem cell therapy abroad to first verify the status of clinics and hospitals as well as practitioners from regulatory authorities.

Earlier, the Food and Drug Administration and the Philippine Medical Association (PMA) reported receiving numerous complaints of foreign doctors performing stem cell therapy in hotels and other non-medical facilities. The PMA said foreign doctors injected patients with animal-based stem cells at P1 million per shot, but these foreigners are not even licensed to practice medicine in the country.

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Foreign doctors need permit for stem cell therapy

Carmel Valley stem cell expert says research field is at the ‘beginning of a revolution in science and medicine’

Dr. Larry Goldstein

By Joe Tash

When Larry Goldstein imagines the potential of modern stem cell science, he is reminded of a scene from the 1967 Academy Award-winning film The Graduate, starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft.

Hoffmans character, a recent college graduate named Benjamin Braddock, is chatting with an older man at a cocktail party. I just want to say one word to youjust one word plastics, the man tells Benjamin.

Goldstein, 57, a Carmel Valley resident and head of one of the nations premier stem cell research labs, sees a vast upside to his chosen field of research in terms of scientific advancement, treatment of devastating diseases, and economic prosperity, similar to the characters prediction for plastics.

Were at the beginning of a revolution in science and medicine, said Goldstein. Whats the hot business going forward? Man, its biological plastics. They can replenish themselves, you can make them do things, you can build stuff. Its incredible.

Its not unrealistic to think that over the course of the next several decades, that artificial organs will be built of materials made from stem cells, either fully or in part, he said.

Goldstein wears two official hats director of the UC San Diego stem cell program, and scientific director of the Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine. As Goldstein explained it, his role with UCSD is to facilitate and remove barriers for investigators working on a number of different stem cell-related projects, while his work with the Sanford Consortium involves coordination with scientists from a number of different research institutions on Torrey Pines Mesa.

He also co-founded a biotech company, Cytokinetics, which is developing drugs based on stem cell science.

In an interview in his Sanford Consortium office, a glass-walled rectangle overlooking the Torrey Pines Gliderport, Goldstein talked about his work, advancements in stem cell research, and his views on higher education.

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Carmel Valley stem cell expert says research field is at the ‘beginning of a revolution in science and medicine’

PRC: Stem cell not for general practitioners

THE Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) stressed Tuesday that the emerging stem cell treatment cannot be practiced just by any kind of medical doctor but only by specialists.

In its position paper on Stem Cell Medicine, the Professional Regulatory Board of Medicine (PRBOM) pointed that local physicians looking to practice stem cell treatment cannot just perform it sans the necessary education, structured/supervised training and extensive clinical experience.

"Not anyone who can inject a chemotherapeutic drug qualifies to be a medical oncologist," said the PRBOM.

The board said it is unacceptable to claim that stem cell medicine falls already under general practice since anybody can do it "as it only entails the injection of stem cell solution."

The PRBOM said that while injection can be performed by any general medical practitioner, it cannot be the same for the desired result of the treatment such as cancer, autism, diabetes, stroke, liver disease, spinal cord injury, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease, among others.

"Physicians, who claim to be specialists and experts in stem cell therapy, should have had extensive training in the treatment of the mentioned diseases and disorders," said PRBOM.

It added that the training program should include quality assurance mechanisms, such as evaluation during and at the end of rotations, as well as training with documentation of clinical experience in the diagnosis and treatment of the concerned medical conditions.

Also, the PRBOM said the training should be conducted in accredited institutions, with the presence of faculty members that have been recognized as experts in the field due to their education, extensive training, and clinical experience.

As for foreign doctors looking to practice stem cell in the country, the PRC reminded them to secure the necessary permits first.

"Foreign physicians who wish to practice stem cell therapy in the country are required to apply for and obtain special temporary permits (STP) from the Professional Regulation Commission," said the PRBOM.

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PRC: Stem cell not for general practitioners