Langley, B.C., resident Nicole Morris gave birth to twin girls, Kaylee and Savannah, two-and-a-half years ago. Born premature, Savannah developed a brain injury from lack of oxygen that left her with cerebral palsy.

The condition can cause severe motor and mental impairment. But preliminary research out of the United States has suggested that injecting children with umbilical cord stem cells might help mitigate effects of cerebral palsy.

Now Savannah’s parents say they want to try the experimental therapy they hope will make her move normally, opting to pay thousands of dollars to receive the treatment that has yet to be proven in clinical trials.

Read more at CTV News.

Blye, along with parents Gary and Andrea McCallum and grandparents Paul and Sheila Gift, flew from Denver to Germany Feb. 1 and were scheduled to return back to Denver Tuesday, Feb. 15.

Blye underwent a stem cell treatment Thursday, Feb. 10 in Germany to help with his cerebral palsy.

Read more at The Holyoke Enterprise.

“Savanna suffers from cerebral palsy and cannot walk or crawl,” said Morris.

Savanna suffered cerebral palsy after she and twin sister Kaylee were born three months premature at Royal Columbian Hospital in August 2008.

A baby brother, Ryder, was born at full term in September.

“He’s chubby and big and so cute,” said the 28-year-old Morris.

She plans to use stem cells from Ryder’s umbilical cord to help his older sister’s condition improve.

Morris did research online and saw a program on U.S. TV about successful clinical trials at Duke University in North Carolina.

But because Savanna was premature, she didn’t qualify.

Through an Internet cerebral palsy support group, Morris contacted Dr. David Steenblock, who claims to have successfully treated the illness with stem cells in California.

The family plans to fly to California next month for five days for the $24,000 U.S. treatment at Steenblock’s Mission Viejo clinic, north of San Diego.

Read more at The Province.

That’s the biggest difference her mother has noticed since the St. Catherine’s (Ontario, Canada) community rallied to send the two-year-old to Germany for special bone marrow stem cell treatment.

She had trouble paying attention before. Her eyes would wander constantly. Lights attracted her attention but not her focus.

“Since we’ve been back, she’s taking time to look at things, she’s focusing a lot better, even on people’s faces,” Ashley DiMarco said.

“If she’s interested in it, it could be a toy, a person, anything, she just really takes her time to focus on what it is. She does take her breaks, but she’s doing so much better. She is much more alert.”

Avaia has spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. She is unable to walk, talk or communicate, and eats through a feeding tube.

Her parents heard about the treatment at a private clinic, XCell Center in Dusseldorf, Germany and decided it was worth a shot, applying with physicians’ letters and other documentation.

When Avaia was accepted earlier this year, Ashley, a stay-at-home mom and John, who works at the hydro tunnel in Niagara Falls, began a whirlwind two months of fundraising in an effort to raise the $30,000 required for treatment and travel.

Through those fundraisers, including barbecues, yard sales, a McDonald’s event, concert and golf tournament in St. Catharines, Thorold and Welland, they met their goal.

“I want to say thank you to everybody who did help,” DiMarco said again this week. “Thanks to them, this is what happened and it’s already given her a better life.”

The Thorold family traveled to Germany Sept. 10, returning nine days later, and were told it would take several weeks to see any results.

Now two months later, Ashley DiMarco said she’s seeing improvements.

Read the full article at The Welland Tribune.

It is a nightmare for parents to hear their child has developed a disease that requires a bone marrow transplant. For instance, patients with leukemia, a type of blood cancer, sometimes have a hard time finding a bone marrow match.

Scientists say the umbilical cord that attaches a baby to its mother is a rich source of stem cells, which can treat diseases like leukemia. They can be collected immediately after birth and stored in freezers by companies such as Cordlife, which operates cord blood banks in Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, India and the Philippines. If a child needs it, doctors can retrieve cord blood for treatment.

“We’re seeing an explosion umbilical cord blood banking as a source of biological insurance for parents in Asia and their children,” said Andrew Wu, Cordlife’s technical and laboratory director.

Read the full article at VOANews.com.

It is a scene her parents believe owes much to Sasha’s involvement in a pioneering stem cell treatment for cerebral palsy.

The three-year-old is believed to be the first British child to be infused with her own umbilical cord blood cells, and her parents told yesterday how they believe the controversial procedure has improved the toddler’s ability to walk, see and speak.

Sasha took part in the first trial to treat cerebral palsy, an umbrella term for a range of different conditions where the brain doesn’t work properly, causing problems with movement, posture and co-ordination, by injecting patients with stem cells harvested from their umbilical cords after birth.

Read the full article at The Daily Mail.

But for the Ghellis, they’re improvements that have always seemed out of reach until a recent trip to Germany.

Jona Ghelli, a Holliston (Mass.) 16-year-old, has cerebral palsy and microcephaly, resulting in significant cognitive and physical impairments. She also suffers from a seizure disorder.

Jona and her parents, Joanne and Paul, got back a few weeks ago from Dussledorf, Germany, where Jona underwent stem cell treatment at the XCell Center.

Although life has since returned to its normal pace in the Ghelli household, Joanne Ghelli said she is still thrilled with the results of the treatment.

“Jona’s doing great,” she said. “We saw improvements almost immediately.”

During the procedure, adult stem cells were taken from Jona’s hip bone and sent to a lab before being injected back into her spine.

Joanne Ghelli said the first hint that the treatment had a level of success came only hours after Jona underwent the procedure.

Read the full article at The MetroWest Daily News.

“Dalton is amazing,” Nikki said. “He keeps improving more and more every day — the journey was worth it and I will do it again when I think the time is right.”

Nikki said she has been on Dalton’s journey for the past year and a half. When she first learned of the experimental stem cell treatment offered in Germany, she began making plans to save and raise money to help her son.

Dalton has cerebral palsy, and each day is a struggle for him. His smile is big, and his mother melts with love every time she looks at her young son. Nikki has been devoted to her son’s needs since he was first diagnosed.

Life began too early for this young boy. He was born nine weeks premature on April 6, 2006. Nikki said her pregnancy was normal, but after birth, Dalton suffered a grade-one brain bleed. At the age of 6 months, his mother began to notice he wasn’t doing what a baby should be doing. At the age of 18 months, he was diagnosed with periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), a form of cerebral palsy. Essentially, he is trapped inside his own body.

“I wanted to do what any mother would do for her child — improve his quality of life,” Nikki said.

Read the full article at JournalStandard.com.

First, stem cells are immature cells that renew themselves for long periods through cell division.

Also, under certain  conditions, they can be “tricked” chemically to become cells that do special things, like become the beating cells of the heart muscle or the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas.

Doctors around the world are already using stem cells to treat diseases. No one is really sure if the treatments are safe and effective (by scientific standards). But many desperately ill and disabled patients travel many miles and spend many thousands of dollars to obtain these treatments.

This book of prayers is for those patients. But it is also for all patients now and in the future who seek relief from their diseases and disabilities through stem cell-based therapeutics.

Each day, people all over the world are moved to worship and adore God, and to acknowledge that they are dependent upon God.

The Gospels mention many times that Jesus himself often withdrew to quiet, desolate places to pray.

As St. Augustine once wrote, “He wishes our desires to be expressed in prayers so that we may be able to receive what he is ready to give.”

This Treasury of Prayers has four inspiring sections:

● Prayers Before Stem Cell Treatment (Contemplation and Decision);

● Prayers While at the Hospital or Clinic;

● Prayers for Patients with Specific Diseases, Conditions and Disabilities

● Scriptural Readings for the Spiritual Comfort of Stem Cell Patients.

To purchase at Amazon.com, click here.

For more information about “And I Shall Be Healed,” click here.

But before the Sarnia family can travel to the XCell-Centre in Düsseldorf, Germany to undergo the procedure, they need to raise $25,000.

Olivia Brown is the couple’s only child. Her identical twin was lost in utero two months before she was born.

Shared blood vessels sent Olivia into shock and she was diagnosed with spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy at 18 months.

The condition limits mobility in all four limbs and makes her largely incapable of speech. Olivia has problems eating, drinking, swallowing and needs constant supervision. (from the Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, Observer)

Read full article.