51 replies to this topic

[Italian Ufo]

One of my collegue I work with, She counducted a close study with patients who had stem cells injected for heart regeneration. The study was completed in 2010.
I still have her powerpoint presentation. The results were that we still dont know the long-term effects of the terapy, moreover we dont know yet if the cells produced are new cells or just scar tissue.
Moroever, the heart shows only little sign of repair. She concluded along with medical docotrs involved in the trials that the therapy its still in its infancy.
Do you think we can do such a major improvments in few years? I am highly skpetical abut it.
I think we should put this in the timeline around 2040-2050.
Just curious to see what anybody else think.

[wjfox]

Well, they've already grown a trachea in a bioreactor. Plus I believe they've grown rat's hearts. A human heart can't be that far off, especially given the technology now available, e.g. 3D scanning.

[wjfox]

Prof Yacoub said his team's latest work had brought the goal of growing a whole, beating human heart closer. "It is an ambitious project but not impossible. If you want me to guess I'd say 10 years. But experience has shown that the progress that is happening nowadays makes it possible to achieve milestones in a shorter time. I wouldn't be surprised if it was some day sooner than we think."

http://www.guardian....mcells.genetics

[Italian Ufo]

Intresting article but I don't know... i think is way too optimistic- When is about medical news I always hope that they will happen sooner than later but I am always skeptical about the claims that some docotrs make. By now for example arthritis should have been curable according to some doctor claim's in 2006 but all the can do is a small cartilage repair. By 2008 some docotrs claimed to find a cure about HIV. But we are not even close to cure both conditions..we only have some small trials. Heart is also a very complex body-machine.
Maybe if we are lucky by 2020 we will have some more consistent trials..but i remain skeptical about the whole heart regeneration.
Thanks for sharing your article.

Edited by Italian Ufo, 11 May 2012 - 04:50 PM.

[Craven]

We'll be able to do whole heart probably sooner than 10 years from now. I'm quite sure of that. Lungs, liver and other "spongy" organs may be a lot harder.

[Roh234]

2020 seems reasonable.

[Italian Ufo]

For me it is very optimistic as I previously expressed. Heart is a very complex tissue. Also, I had been living with a chronic condition for several years and I know how hard it is for a therapy to pass from the lab to the hospital 8 years seems too short judging where we are at in this time. I also worked with some surgeon that used stem cells to regenerate the heart. If someone wants some references and articles on it I can send them on a privete message, for now they have had very small results on patients sometimes none.
Morover, the majority of surgeon says that it is hard to determine when we will have approved therapy for heart regeneration with stem cells. Google and you will see.
For me if we are lucky by 2020 we will be able to regenerate some parts of the heart and still it will be on clinical trials phase II.
But anyway lets keep this space update.

Edited by Italian Ufo, 12 May 2012 - 02:03 AM.

[Italian Ufo]

http://abcnews.go.co...ory?id=15576909

Here is a more recent article. Doctor claims everything is still in early studies.

[Logically Irrational]

Well, they've already grown a trachea in a bioreactor. Plus I believe they've grown rat's hearts. A human heart can't be that far off, especially given the technology now available, e.g. 3D scanning.

You're right about the rat hearts.

http://ngm.nationalg...generation-text

Other labs are also racing to make bioartificial organs. A jawbone has sprouted at Columbia University and a lung at Yale. At the University of Minnesota, Doris Taylor has fabricated a beating rat heart, growing cells from one rat on a scaffold she made from the heart of another by washing off its own cells. And at the University of Michigan, H. David Humes has created an artificial kidney from cells seeded onto a synthetic scaffold. The cell-phone-size kidney has passed tests on sheep—it's not yet implantable, but it's wearable, unlike a dialysis machine, and it does more than filter toxins from blood. It also makes hormones and performs other kidney functions.

[Italian Ufo]

The rat heart was in 2007-8 if I remember correctly. But to pass the technology from Animals to Humans it is a huge gap.

[Craven]

trachea and bladders.

[Italian Ufo]

Also in the medical scientific enviroment, some resercher make big claims in order to achive more fundings, it is a strategy which is often used.
In any case I really hope that by 2020 we will have such therapy.

[Guyverman1990]

Maybe they won't become widespread, they will just succeed in creating a few by this year.

[Italian Ufo]

Guys, we really get to move this on the timeline and place it around 2040-50. I dont want to sound too arrogant but we won't have any complex organs replacment by 2020. I know directly pepole who are involved in these types of reserchs and I spoke with them the otherday and they all agreed with me that is at least 20 years away( if not more). Furthermore have a read on today's article:

http://www.bbc.co.uk...health-18158122
"Early tests in animals proved promising but the experimental treatment is still years from being used in people."

By 2020 I forecast that via stem cells we could repair bones fractures, solve cartilage problems, maybe we can regnerate ligaments and tendons, treat some skin problems, have retinal improvment ,reconstruct the cornea ( it 's already happening somehow ), and amelirotate some heart functions. Also, if we are lucky we may have treatments for some diabetes always with regenerative medicine.

Edited by Italian Ufo, 23 May 2012 - 06:14 AM.

[wjfox]

Another story, from 2011:

http://www.dailymail...eakthrough.html

[Italian Ufo]

Another story, from 2011:

http://www.dailymail...eakthrough.html

This is a procedure that still needs to be improved. it will stay on trial for several years but by 2020 will be a little bit more common.
But the need for external donors won't be eliminated. When we speak about the creation of a new organ made from our cells that technology is still decades away . Anyway no problems if you are conviced of the opposite.

Edited by Italian Ufo, 23 May 2012 - 09:19 AM.

[Craven]

Question is - are we talking about technical possibility or regular procedures.

[Raklian]

And don't forget to account for unforeseen radical breakthroughs that will bring this technology to commercial use a lot sooner.

[MarcusAurelius]

Not too optimistic at all.

http://www.zeitnews....art-muscle.html

[Italian Ufo]

Not too optimistic at all.

http://www.zeitnews....art-muscle.html

Did you read well the article ?: "The technique had been tested only on rats and it seemed decades could pass until it would become suitable for humans".
As I said, For reserch purposes I have worked with pepole that is experimentig stem cells on heart. The vast majority says that this technology will be available years and years from now.

Edited by Italian Ufo, 25 May 2012 - 12:15 AM.