142 pages, PDF format, available via download

From the Introduction to "Stem Cell Cures: How Soon?"

Important stem cell discoveries continue to be made at the basic research level and at the preclinical and clinical levels. Stem cell research continues to advance. Press releases continue to be issued by gushing public relations writers exclaiming about “breakthroughs” and “hope” and “potential treatments” and even “potential cures.”

So, patients wonder, where are the treatments? Where are the cures?

That is why we have written this report. We wanted to get it from the horses’ mouths, from the stem cell researchers on the front lines, at the cutting edge, as it were. We wanted to be able to tell patients and their families and their doctors, and everyone else, for that matter, where we stand.

Is there any hope for stem cell-based cures or therapies on the horizon?

This report provides both an update on recent scientific developments in key areas of stem cell research and a look ahead by the researchers in those areas toward the future. We can’t emphasize enough that we are talking about “scientific” developments, those that follow a rigorous scientific method and a carefully regulated pathway to approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

With that in mind, we’ve included a warning on stem cell scams being perpetrated on desperately ill patients worldwide, people who have spent thousands and thousands of dollars on travel, accommodations and spurious (not only ineffective but often harmful) “treatments” for which there has been no scientific evidence (beyond unreliable anecdotal accounts) to corroborate outlandish claims.

We’ve also included in the Appendices some helpful background information on stem cell science, the history of stem cell research, and the latest information on the various sources of stem cells.

Our hope is that this report will shed some light on a small but important area of the world we live in, perhaps give patients a realistic basis for hope, and provide an informal benchmark for gauging future stem cell-related scientific accomplishments.

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. Stem Cells and the Immune System

• Triggering the Immune Response


• Graft-versus-Host Disease (GVHD)


• Conclusion and Forecast

3. Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

• Disease-Specific Stem Cells

4. Stem Cells and Central Nervous System Diseases and Disorders

• Basic Research
• Alzheimer’s Disease
• Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease)
• Stroke
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Parkinson’s Disease
• Spinal Cord Injury
• Batten Disease

5. Stem Cells and Muscle Diseases and Disorders

• Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
  

6. Stem Cells and the Cardiovascular System

• Blood Diseases
• Myeloproliferative Disorders (MPD)
• Sickle Cell Anemia
• The Heart
• Congestive Heart Failure
• Ischemic Heart Disease
• Myocardial Infarction (Heart Attack)
• Blood Vessels
• Critical Limb Ischemia
• Conclusion and Forecast

7. Stem Cells and the Pancreas

• Conclusion and Forecast

8. Stem Cells and the Liver

• Graft-Versus-Host Disease
• Liver Regeneration
• Hepatitis

9. Stem Cells and Cancer

• Stem Cells as Cancer Treatment Vehicle
  

10. Stem Cells and the Lungs

• Repair
• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
  

11. Stem Cells and other Diseases and Disorders

• Eye Diseases and Disorders
• Bone Diseases and Disorders
• Skin Diseases
• Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa (RDEB)
• Sphincter Damage
• Breast Augmentation and Reconstruction
  

12. Stem Cell Scams: A Warning

13. U.S. & International Research Funding Policy

• U.S. Policy: 2001 to Present
• International Policy
  

14. Appendix 1

• What Are Stem Cells
• Unique Properties of Stem Cells
• What Are Embryonic Stem Cells?
• What Are Adult Stem Cells?
• Similarities and Differences Between Embryonic and Adult Stem Cells
• Potential Uses of Stem Cells
  

15. Appendix 2: History of Stem Cell Science
 
16. Appendix 3: Timeline of Embryonic Stem Cell/Germ Cell Research

17. Appendix 4: Sources of Stem Cells

• Blood
• Embryos
• Fetuses
• Placentas
• Amniotic Fluid
• Menstrual Blood
• Adipose (Fat) Tissue
• Hair Follicles
• Blood Vessels
• Heart
• Brain
• Muscle Satellite Cells