Hockey legendGordie Howehas made strides in his recovery from a stroke after underdoing adult stem-cell treatment earlier this month inMexico.

The 86-year-old Howe had a significant stroke in October and his family said in an update on Friday that he has shown significant improvement since participating in a clinical trial.

In a statement issued through theDetroit Red Wings, the family described the procedure and his recovery:

"Following the press coverage of our father's deteriorating medical condition, the Howe family was contacted in late November by Dr.Maynard Howe(CEO) andDave McGuigan(VP) ofStemedica Cell Technologies. McGuigan knew our family as a result of his previous employment with theDetroit Red Wings.

"Stemedica is abiotechnologycompany that manufactures allogeneic adultstem cellsin itsU.S. governmentlicensed,cGMP facilityinSan Diego,California. Although no relation, Dr. Howe and his brothers Drs. David and Roger are hockey players and bigGordie Howefans, having grown up inMinnesota. They wished to help our father by generously facilitating Dad's participation in a stem cell clinical trial at Novastem, a licensed distributor of Stemedica's products inMexico.

Novastem (www.novastem.mx) is currently conducting federally licensed andInstitutional Review Boardapproved clinical trials for several medical conditions, including stroke, using Stemedica's stem cell products. At the time, we were contacted, Mr. Hockey had been rapidly declining and was essentially bedridden with little ability to communicate or to eat on his own.

"After reviewing the information on Stemedica and Novastem, our family decided to give our father this opportunity. On December 8, Mr. Hockey underwent a two-day, non-surgical treatment at Novastem's medical facility. The treatment included neuralstem cellsinjected into the spinal canal on Day 1 and mesenchymalstem cellsby intravenous infusion on Day 2. His response was truly miraculous. At the end of Day 1, he was walking with minimal effort for the first time since his stroke. By Day 2, he was conversing comfortably with family and staff at the clinic.

"On the third day, he walked to his seat on the plane under his own power. By Day 5, he was walking unaided and taking part in helping out with daily household chores. When tested, his ability to name items has gone from less than 25 percent before the procedure to 85 percent today. His physical therapists have been astonished. Although his short-term memory, strength, endurance and coordination have plenty of room for improvement, we are hopeful that he will continue to improve in the months to come.

"As a family, we are thrilled that Dad's quality of life has greatly improved, and his progress has exceeded our greatest expectations. Once again, we cannot emphasize how much you have fueled Mr. Hockey's recovery and we thank everyone for their continued prayers and support."

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Gordie Howe's condition improves after stem-cell treatment