Stem Cell Clinic

Stanford scientists identify source of most cases of invasive bladder cancer

By Stem Cell Medical Center

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

20-Apr-2014

Contact: Krista Conger kristac@stanford.edu 650-725-5371 Stanford University Medical Center

STANFORD, Calif. A single type of cell in the lining of the bladder is responsible for most cases of invasive bladder cancer, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

Their study, conducted in mice, is the first to pinpoint the normal cell type that can give rise to invasive bladder cancers. It's also the first to show that most bladder cancers and their associated precancerous lesions arise from just one cell, and explains why many human bladder cancers recur after therapy.

"We've learned that, at an intermediate stage during cancer progression, a single cancer stem cell and its progeny can quickly and completely replace the entire bladder lining," said Philip Beachy, PhD, professor of biochemistry and of developmental biology. "All of these cells have already taken several steps along the path to becoming an aggressive tumor. Thus, even when invasive carcinomas are successfully removed through surgery, this corrupted lining remains in place and has a high probability of progression."

Although the cancer stem cells, and the precancerous lesions they form in the bladder lining, universally express an important signaling protein called sonic hedgehog, the cells of subsequent invasive cancers invariably do not a critical switch that appears vital for invasion and metastasis. This switch may explain certain confusing aspects of previous studies on the cellular origins of bladder cancer in humans. It also pinpoints a possible weak link in cancer progression that could be targeted by therapies.

"This could be a game changer in terms of therapeutic and diagnostic approaches," said Michael Hsieh, MD, PhD, assistant professor of urology and a co-author of the study. "Until now, it's not been clear whether bladder cancers arise as the result of cancerous mutations in many cells in the bladder lining as the result of ongoing exposure to toxins excreted in the urine, or if it's due instead to a defect in one cell or cell type. If we can better understand how bladder cancers begin and progress, we may be able to target the cancer stem cell, or to find molecular markers to enable earlier diagnosis and disease monitoring."

Beachy is the senior author of the study, which will be published online April 20 in Nature Cell Biology. He is the Ernest and Amelia Gallo Professor in the School of Medicine and a member of the Stanford Cancer Institute and the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. He is also a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. Kunyoo Shin, PhD, an instructor at the institute, is the lead author.

Bladder cancer is the fourth most common cancer in men and the ninth most common in women. Smoking is a significant risk factor. There are two main types of the disease: one that invades the muscle around the bladder and metastasizes to other organs, and another that remains confined to the bladder lining. Unlike the more-treatable, noninvasive cancer which comprises about 70 percent of bladder cancers the invasive form is largely incurable. It is expensive and difficult to treat, and the high likelihood of recurrence requires ongoing monitoring after treatment.

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Stanford scientists identify source of most cases of invasive bladder cancer

Umbilical cord blood transplants become standard

By Stem Cell Medical Center

Sarah and Marc discovered that in the Philadelphia area, even if parents realized umbilical cords were more than just waste products of childbirth, there was no easy way to donate the tissue. So they established the Mason Shaffer Foundation to change that.

This month, Temple University Hospital launched a program in collaboration with the foundation and the New Jersey Cord Blood Bank to educate expectant parents and enable them to donate in a convenient way - at no charge to them or Temple. The foundation provides the educational material, and the cord-blood bank covers the collection costs, which are offset by health insurance reimbursement for transplants.

Three years ago, Lankenau Medical Center in Wynnewood became the foundation's first cord-blood donation center.

Temple, however, is expected to help fill the desperate need for a more racially diverse cord-blood stockpile. That need was recognized by the federal Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005, which included funding that will help underwrite the first year of Temple's program.

Of the 3,200 babies delivered at Temple each year, 65 percent are African American, and 30 percent are Hispanic.

"Ethnically diverse groups are underrepresented as cord-blood donors and have a lower chance of finding a matched donor," said Dimitrios Mastrogiannis, Temple's director of maternal fetal medicine.

"Our biggest challenge is building diversity," echoed Roger Mrowiec, scientific director of Community Blood Services in Montvale, N.J., which runs the New Jersey Cord Blood Bank. "A Caucasian has about a 95 percent chance of finding a match. For Hispanics, that falls to 70 percent, and for African Americans, it's only 60 percent."

Mrowiec spoke at a Temple news conference where the grown-ups were happily upstaged by the foundation's eponymous poster boy. Although Mason is small for his age and blind in his left eye, his transplant cured his disease: malignant infantile osteopetrosis.

"Do you know why we're here?" his mother asked him.

"Because I got cells that fixed my bones," the precocious preschooler piped up.

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Umbilical cord blood transplants become standard

Colorado Clinic Now Accepting New Pain Management Patients at Three Locations in Northern Colorado Including Boulder …

By Stem Cell Clinic

Greeley, Colorado (PRWEB) April 21, 2014

The top pain management clinics in Northern Colorado, Colorado Clinic, now are accepting patients at three locations in Boulder, Greeley and Loveland. Treatment is provided by a Double Board Certified pain management doctor with most insurance being accepted.

Colorado Clinic offers a number of services dedicated for pain relief. This includes sports medicine treatment, medical and interventional pain therapies and hormone replacement therapy. With the various treatments, there are over 50 therapy options to customize for patient needs.

In addition to conventional pain treatments such as epidural injections and pain medication, Colorado Clinic also provides several cutting edge options. This includes regenerative medicine with stem cell procedures and platelet rich plasma therapy. Also, radiofrequency ablation, spinal cord stimulator implants, kyphoplasty and medial branch blocks are offered as well.

All types of acute and chronic pain conditions are treated at each location including back and neck pain, arthritis, sciatica, degenerative disc disease, fibromyalgia, RSD, headaches and much more.

All of the Colorado Clinic locations accept most insurances including Medicare, PPO's, some HMO's, Colorado Workers Compensation, Personal Injury Liens and self pay as well. To initiate treatment, call the closest location: Loveland Pain Management (970) 221-9451 Boulder Pain Management (303) 444-4141 Greeley Pain Management (970) 396-6994

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stem cell therapy treatment for Global Developmental Delay with Severe Mental Retardation – Video

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stem cell therapy treatment for Global Developmental Delay with Severe Mental Retardation
improvement seen in just 3 months after stem cell therapy treatment for Global Developmental Delay with Severe Mental Retardation by dr alok sharma, mumbai, ...

By: Neurogen Brain and Spine Institute

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stem cell therapy treatment for Global Developmental Delay with Severe Mental Retardation - Video

stem cell therapy treatment for cerebral palsy with mental retardation with low vision by dr alok – Video

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stem cell therapy treatment for cerebral palsy with mental retardation with low vision by dr alok
improvement seen in just 3 months after stem cell therapy treatment for cerebral palsy with mental retardation with low vision by dr alok sharma, mumbai, ind...

By: Neurogen Brain and Spine Institute

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stem cell therapy treatment for cerebral palsy with mental retardation with low vision by dr alok - Video

Cancer Stem Cells Linked to Drug Resistance

By Stem Cell Treatment

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Newswise Most drugs used to treat lung, breast and pancreatic cancers also promote drug-resistance and ultimately spur tumor growth. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered a molecule, or biomarker, called CD61 on the surface of drug-resistant tumors that appears responsible for inducing tumor metastasis by enhancing the stem cell-like properties of cancer cells.

The findings, published in the April 20, 2014 online issue of Nature Cell Biology, may point to new therapeutic opportunities for reversing drug resistance in a range of cancers, including those in the lung, pancreas and breast.

There are a number of drugs that patients respond to during their initial cancer treatment, but relapse occurs when cancer cells become drug-resistant, said David Cheresh, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Pathology and UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center associate director for Innovation and Industry Alliances. We looked at the cells before and after they became resistant and asked, What has changed in the cells?

Cheresh and colleagues investigated how tumor cells become resistant to drugs like erlotinib or lapatinib, known as receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors and commonly used in standard cancer therapies. They found that as drug resistance occurs, tumor cells acquire stem cell-like properties that give them the capacity to survive throughout the body and essentially ignore the drugs.

Specifically, the scientists delineated the molecular pathway that facilitates both cancer stemness and drug resistance, and were able to identify existing drugs that exploit this pathway. These drugs not only reverse stem cell-like properties of tumors, but also appear to re-sensitize tumors to drugs that the cancer cells had developed resistance to.

The good news is that weve uncovered a previously undefined pathway that the tumor cells use to transform into cancer stem cells and that enable tumors to become resistant to commonly used cancer drugs, said Cheresh.

Based on these findings, Hatim Husain, MD, an assistant professor who treats lung and brain cancer patients at Moores Cancer Center, has designed a clinical trial to attack this pathway in patients whose tumors are drug-resistant. The trial will be open to patients with lung cancer who have experienced cancer progression and drug resistance to erlotinib. It is expected to begin in the next year.

Resistance builds to targeted therapies against cancer, and we have furthered our understanding of the mechanisms by which that happens, said Husain. Based on these research findings we now better understand how to exploit the Achilles heel of these drug-resistant tumors. Treatments will evolve into combinational therapies where one may keep the disease under control and delay resistance mechanisms from occurring for extended periods of time.

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Cancer Stem Cells Linked to Drug Resistance

Top Phoenix Foot and Ankle Specialist, Valley Foot Surgeons, Now Offering Stem Cell Procedures for Healing Diabetic …

By Stem Cell Treatment

Phoenix, Arizona (PRWEB) April 21, 2014

The top foot and ankle specialists in Arizona at Valley Foot Surgeons are now offering stem cell treatments for diabetic wounds. The treatments may propel these difficult wounds to heal in a much shorter time frame than they would without regenerative medicine therapy. The stem cell doctor is a four-time Phoenix Magazine Top Doc Winner; call (480) 994-5977 for more information and scheduling.

With up to a third of individuals suffering from diabetes (or pre-diabetes), wounds and ulcers are becoming more common all the time in the foot and ankle area. Due to the immunocompromised state of diabetics, it can be extremely difficult for the human body to naturally heal these wounds. Sometimes, they persist for years, become infected, and may lead to an eventual need for an amputation.

At Valley Foot Surgeons, Phoenix Top Doc Richard Jacoby is now offering stem cell treatments for diabetic wounds. These treatments are performed as an outpatient and involve subcutaneous injections of amniotic derived stem cell material around the wound.

The procedure offers several benefits in addition to a hefty concentration of stem cells. The material is immunologically privileged and does not cause a rejection reaction. It is processed from an FDA regulated lab.

The amniotic derived stem cells assists with the creation of new blood vessels to help heal the wounds and also contains a significant amount of growth factors. The stem cell material also has antimicrobial properties, helping avoid infection.

Along with the stem cell procedures, Valley Foot Surgeons offers laser treatment simultaneously which further helps with the healing process. With approximately 100 stem cell procedures performed so far for diabetic wounds, the outcomes have been nothing short of incredible.

Wounds have been healing, and much faster than with conventional methods. For more information and treatment with the top foot and ankle stem cell doctor in Phoenix and Scottsdale, call (480) 420-3499.

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Lost stem cells are replaced by non-stem cells: Study

By Stem Cell Medicine

Home > News > health-news

Washington, Apr 18 : A new study has found that when a certain kind of stem cell is killed off experimentally, another group of non-stem cells can come out of retirement to replace them.

Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered the unexpected phenomenon in the organs that produce sperm in fruit flies.

The discovery sheds light on the tiny "environments" that stem cells occupy in animal bodies and may help explain how stem cells in tumors replenish themselves, the researchers said.

Damage of the kind duplicated in the laboratory occurs naturally after exposure to radiation and perhaps also after ingestion of toxic chemicals such as those used in chemotherapy.

The research group, led by Erika Matunis, Ph.D., a professor of cell biology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, has been using the fruit fly as a model living system in which to study stem cells in their natural state.

Most stem cell research is done on cells grown in the laboratory, but in real life, stem cells reside in tissues, where they are sequestered in tiny spaces known as niches.

Adult stem cells keep dividing throughout life to make various kinds of cells, like new blood cells and germ cells.

Matunis' group studies such niches in fruit fly testes, the sperm-producing organs shaped like a coiled tube whose end houses a niche. In the niche are three kinds of cells: germ line stem cells, which divide to produce sperm; somatic cyst stem cells, which make a kind of cell that helps the sperm-producing cells out; and hub cells, which make signals that keep the other two kinds of cells going.

The hub cells are not stem cells; they have settled on their final form, incapable of dividing further or changing their function or so everyone thought.

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Lost stem cells are replaced by non-stem cells: Study

Scientists use cloning to make stem cells matched to two adults

By Stem Cell Medical Center

Scientists have replicated one of the most significant accomplishments in stem cell research by creating human embryos that were clones of two men.

The lab-engineered embryos were harvested within days and used to create lines of infinitely reproducing embryonic stem cells, which are capable of growing into any type of human tissue.

The work, reported Thursday in the journal Cell Stem Cell, comes 11 months after researchers in Oregon said they had produced the world's first human embryo clones and used them to make stem cells. Their study, published in Cell, aroused skepticism after critics pointed out multiple errors and duplicated images.

In addition, the entire effort to clone human embryos and then dismantle them in the name of science troubles some people on moral grounds.

MORE: Medicines and machines, inspired by nature

The scientists in Oregon and the authors of the new report acknowledged that the clones they created could develop into babies if implanted in surrogate wombs. But like others in the field, they have said reproductive cloning would be unethical and irresponsible.

The process used to create cloned embryos is called somatic cell nuclear transfer, or SCNT. It involves removing the nucleus from an egg cell and replacing it with a nucleus from a cell of the person to be cloned. The same method was used to create Dolly the sheep in 1996, along with numerous animals from other species.

Human cloning was a particular challenge, in part because scientists had trouble getting enough donor eggs to carry out their experiments. Some scientists said SCNT in humans would be impossible.

Dr. Robert Lanza, the chief scientific officer for Advanced Cell Technology Inc. in Marlborough, Mass., has been working on SCNT off and on for about 15 years. He and his colleagues finally achieved success with a modified version of the recipe used by the Oregon team and skin cells donated by two men who were 35 and 75.

After swapping out the nucleus in the egg cell, both groups used caffeine to delay the onset of cell division a technique that has been called "the Starbucks effect." But instead of waiting 30 minutes to prompt cell division, as was done in the Oregon experiment, Lanza and his team waited two hours.

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Scientists use cloning to make stem cells matched to two adults

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