LeQuadrillage Family Health & Wellness Center
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health and wellness treatment protocols.

 

OVERVIEW OF STEM CELL THERAPY

Most discussions of stem cell research and therapy center around embryonic stem cells and they often result in very emotional discourse.  That is because to obtain these stem cells, human embryos must be killed and many people object strenuously to this practice.  There has been, and continues to be a lot of misplaced and badly considered emotion centered around embryonic stem cell research,

The use of embryonic stem cells in the treatment of disease is a  long way from becoming clinically viable.  One of the very serious problems associated with them is that there is a strong and justified suspicion that they may accelerate the growth of tumors.  However, many doctors see the use of  adult stem cells as the silver bullet in the treatment of many many degenerative diseases.  And this is the treatment we're discussing here.

DISEASES TREATABLE WITH ADULT STEM CELLS

ALS ALZHEIMERS DISEASE AUTISM CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE CEREBRAL PALSY DIABETES FAILED BACK SURGERY SYNDROME MACULAR DEGENERATION MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS OSTEOARTHRITIS PARKINSON DISEASE SPINAL CORD INJURIES STROKE

 

TREATMENT PROCEDURE

FOUR STAGES INVOLVED:

1. Bone marrow extraction
2. Isolation, analysis and concentration of the stem cells in the laboratory
3. Stem cell implantation
4. Postoperative care

EXTRACTION:
In general, bone marrow is extracted from the hip bone by a physician.  Variances can occur based on the specific disorder under treatment.  This is normally done under local anesthesia and the patient barely feels the extraction of the bone marrow.  Stem cell extraction can also be accomplished  with a lesser used technique that involves the mobilization of bone marrow stem cells through the use of growth factors.  Here the growth factors are introduced into the body by injection.  The growth factors then cause the stem cells from the bone marrow to enter the bloodstream, where they can then be isolated from a blood sample.

ANALYSIS:
Now the quality and quantity of stem cells contained in the bone marrow are tested in the laboratory.  After isolation of  the stem cells, they are separated from the plasma and red and white blood corpuscles by means of a chromatographical procedure and tested for the presence of viral markers such as HIV, hepatitis, and cytomegalia.  Everything must be done under sterile conditions so that the stem cells do not become contaminated.

There need to be more than two million CD34+ cells with better than 80% viability to make the concentrate suitable for patient implantation.  When all these conditions have been met, the cells are stored in liquid nitrogen at  -196 degrees Celsius until it is time for them to be used.

IMPLANTATION:
There are basically four different ways of  administering stem cells.  In general, the method used depends on the condition treated and the patient's overall general health.

1. Intravenous injection
2. Angiography
3. Lumbar puncture
4. Direct injection into affected area (as in the treatment of diabetic feet).

INTRAVENOUS INFUSION   
This is the most straightforward method.  Suitable for patients with cardiovascular disease, strokes, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, Parkinson's Disease, Alzheimer's Disease, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

ANGIOGRAPHY: 
Angiography is used to deliver the stem cells directly to an organ, such as the pancreas of diabetics, the heart  of those with a cardiovascular problem.  A catheter is inserted into a femoral artery and pushed to the affected organ.  The procedure takes about an hour and a half, after which the patient will need close monitoring for several hours

LUMBAR PUNCTURE;
Suitable for patients with neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's or Multiple Sclerosis..  Also for patients who  cannot undergo angiography as a result of a blocked artery or who have a high risk of hemorrhaging.  This is a very safe procedure where stem cells are injected into the cerebrospinal fluid.  The fluid then circulates, transporting the stem cells directly to the damaged tissue in the spinal cord or brain.  Local anesthesia is used in this procedure.

DIRECT INJECTION - SURGERY:
The maximum concentration of stem cells into diseased tissue is accomplished by direct injection.  Sometimes, surgery is needed to get the concentrated stem cells into place for maximum effectiveness.  In the treatment of a spinal cord injury, for example, a laminectomy is performed under general anesthetic.  Here the affected vertabra and the dura are opened and the stem cells injected with a small needle.  This operation usually requires the patient to remain hospitalized for two or three days.  Also, the treatment of a stroke victim involves the injection of the stem cells directly into the affected area of the brain.  This procedure is performed under local anesthetic through a tiny hole in the skull.  Overnight monitoring is usually required, after which the patient can return home.

WHERE TO GET TREATED

Currently there are only three treatment centers in the western world capable of offering this treatment protocol.  While there is also a very good clinic in the Ukraine, and in the Republic of Georgia, the clinics we are comfortable with posting on LeQuadrillage are located in Düsseldorf, Germany, Panama City,  Panama, and in Tijuana, Mexico.  It's best to be prepared to spend from 10 to 21 days in the area.  The clinic of your choice can give you more specific information when you contact them.

http://www.xcell-center.com

http://www.stemcellsforhope.com

http://www.cellmedicine.com

 

STEM CELL THERAPY AND CANCER

Many people have expressed concern over the safety of stem cell therapy, having heard that stem cells may cause cancer.  Therapy involving embryonic, or fetal, stem cells is being practiced in Eastern Europe, and while the clinics that provide this therapy assert that there is no risk of cancer in their treatment, LeQuadrillage  staff remain unconvinced.  This may well be a moot question in that the therapy is not available in the western world and we wouldn't recommend anyone traveling to Russia to get it.  The concern is justified where treatment with embryonic stem cells is concerned.  Fetal and embryonic stem cells divide at an extremely fast rate and have been shown unquestioningly to have cancer causing potential in animals and humans.  This type of therapy is outlawed in the United States and most of the western world.  Adult stem cells which are transplanted immediately after their removal and concentration for therapeutic purposes do not increase the risk of  tumor unless the patient already has cancer.  No indications of  higher tumor formation have been found to exist over the last 40 years in the therapy of  leukemia and lymphoma, which involves the use of  adult stem cells. ONE EXCEPTION: The growth of an existing tumor can be promoted by the insertion of adult stem cells and tissue that is damaged by irradiation can harden into cancerous tissue after the injection of  adult stem cells.