Adult Stem Cells May Treat Many Diseases

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Adult Stem Cells May Treat Many Diseases

Study Suggests Benefits for Patients With Autoimmune Diseases and

Heart Disease

By Salynn Boyles

http://www.webmd.com/news/20080226/adult-stem-cell-therapy-shows-

promise

WebMD Medical NewsReviewed by Louise Chang, MDFeb. 26, 2008 -- Adult

stem cells harvested from either blood or bone marrow hold promise

for the treatment of a wide range of autoimmune diseases and heart

disease, a research review shows.

Since the late 1990s, adult stem cell therapy has been used

experimentally to treat multiple sclerosis (MS), type 1 diabetes,

rheumatoid arthritis, and several other diseases of the immune

system, as well as heart disease.

Northwestern University researcher Burt, MD, and colleagues

summarize results from roughly 60 of these studies involving about

2,400 patients in a review published in tomorrow's edition of The

Journal of the American Medical Association.

Burt pioneered the research on adult stem cells for the treatment of

autoimmune disease. He tells WebMD that the potential uses for stem

cell therapy are only now beginning to be understood.

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