The Crohn's ended my Navy career, however, I was lucky enough to have had
almost 10 years and the did a medical board and chose to retire me. But
that was 12 years ago and when I first retired/discovered I had Crohn's I
was mad at everyone and everything as I couldn't have a second career, but
as my mother told me when I was young, "if life gives you lemons, make
lemonade". I couldn't keep flying even as a civilian as the FAA doesn't
look real kindly on the 390mg of morphine I have to take daily.
But concerning your own stem cells, from what the study says and the RN
told
me they are not "yours" as unless you have some saved (frozen) when you
were
born, that NOD2 gene is already in your blood. The simplest way I can
explain it is that they have stem cells that are healthy and when given to
a
Crohn's patient, they go and try to take the place of the stem cells that
are attacking the intestine.
I might be a father this fall and I am going to have some of his stem
cells
preserved for future use. It is expensive, but I am 100% convinced that
this stem cells study will either become a simple treatment for Crohn's or
ideally some type of cure, hence why I am going to have some of his
natural
stem cells available for treatment some day. For the last 2 years I have
had to watch my father battle brain cancer, a very rare type and had it
been
caught earlier he could of some sort of stem cell wash, but by the time we
got to one of the top Oncologist in Lymphoma, his memory was too far gone.
If anyone is interested in the clinical trials that are entering Phase
III,
please email me and we can correspond privately. Or you can call the
company on the link "anon" put in a previous message in this thread.
According to the RN I spoke with, should this gets FDA approval, Topeka,
Kansas (Cotton O'Neil Digestive Center) will be the HQ for future R&D and
treatment. I just wish I could tell you that this is the answer, though
hopefully I will be able to tell you that at some point in the future as
it
is very promising.
Ken
"Rufus" <not@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:o_X9k.231679$yE1.202818@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Yes, thanks. Would also like to know if they prepare the infusion from
> stem cells derived from the patients own tissue - that would be the
> ultimate. Please keep us up to date on the progress of this study.
>
>
> ...hope your disease didn't/doesn't stop you from flying. I have a
> private ticket myself, and want to start up again.
>
> --
> - Rufus
>
> xUSNFlyer wrote:
>> Rufus,
>>
>> From what I have read and what the RN told me if it is approved it
will
>> be a treatment, but as with virtually everything else it would depend
on
>> the individual and severity of their Crohn's. The RN said that you
might
>> need an injection of the stem cells every 6 months or maybe a year. I
>> wish the data from the Phase 2 study that anon referenced was
available,
>> but they are now accepting applications for Phase 3 and it is on the
>> "Fast Track" for FDA approval. For myself, I would prefer an injection
>> or infusion once a year instead of my current regimen of 100mg of
Immuran
>> and 1gram of Pentasa daily. The RN I spoke with that though this is
just
>> a treatment now, she feels that it could lead to replacing the NOD-2
gene
>> (the one that causes Crohn's) through stem cells.
>>
>> Hope this helps.
>>
>> Ken
>>
>>
>>
>> "Rufus" <not@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>> news:%KR9k.231260$yE1.156323@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>>> This would be another therapy, right? Not a "cure"?..
>>>
>>> --
>>> - Rufus
>>>
>>> anon wrote:
>>>> For some reason, my original post of this article came with an
>>>> attachment, so I am reposting it--this time, without any attachments,
I
>>>> hope.
>>>> Newsday.com
>>>> Researchers to test stem cells to treat Crohn's
>>>> BY DELTHIA RICKS
>>>>
>>>> delthia.ricks@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>>>>
>>>> June 18, 2008
>>>>
>>>> Stem cells may force Crohn's disease into retreat, say Long Island
>>>> medical investigators who are embarking on a pioneering analysis that
>>>> targets patients who've failed other therapies.
>>>>
>>>> Cases of Crohn's disease have skyrocketed since World War II, jumping
>>>> tenfold in the United States and raising questions about the
disease's
>>>> genetics and demography. It is one of two disorders - the other is
>>>> ulcerative colitis - that are known as inflammatory bowel diseases.
>>>> Before the 20th century there was no recorded evidence of either.
>>>>
>>>> Dr. Robert Richards, director of clinical research in the
>>>> gastroenterology division at Stony Brook University Medical Center,
is
>>>> embarking on a clinical study involving the infusion of adult stem
>>>> cells, which he and other researchers theorize may force the
condition
>>>> into retreat. His analysis is part of a multicenter trial nationwide,
>>>> focusing on patients with moderate to severe forms of the disease.
>>>>
>>>> Patients had "basically tried all of the medications that are out
there
>>>> for Crohn's and have not done well or have become intolerant to
>>>> [standard] treatment," Richards said.
>>>>
>>>> The stem cells are drawn from the bone marrow of adult donors and
>>>> processed into an infusible preparation. Because stem cells are
>>>> essentially blank slates capable of morphing into any kind of cell,
>>>> researchers believe that when infused into the intestinal tract, they
>>>> will help remodel cells there and relieve symptoms.
>>>>
>>>> Inflammation caused by Crohn's disease can occur anywhere along the
>>>> tract from the mouth to the anus. Symptoms may wax and wane but the
>>>> inflammation can lead to scarring, which dramatically disrupts
>>>> intestinal function. Some people are racked with painful diarrhea
>>>> tinged with blood.
>>>>
>>>> Current therapies include anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics.
>>>> Additional treatments include those that quell the activity of
certain
>>>> parts of the immune system. Among the theories explaining the cause
of
>>>> Crohn's is that it is triggered by turncoat cells, so that the body
is
>>>> at war with itself.
>>>>
>>>> Two weeks ago the Food and Drug Administration announced an
>>>> investigation into three drugs that tamp down the immune system,
>>>> following 30 re****ts of children and young adults who developed
cancer.
>>>>
>>>> Edda Ramsdell, executive director of Long Island's division of the
>>>> Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America, said the stem cell
research
>>>> could provide a new avenue. "This is exciting but there probably
isn't
>>>> a single answer. People react differently to treatments," she said.
>>>>
>>>> Dr. R. Balfour Sartor of the University of North Carolina, scientific
>>>> adviser to the foundation, said it's always im****tant to explore new
>>>> therapies, including stem cells. "I am frustrated by the lack of
>>>> current medical and even surgical cures of this disease," said
Sartor,
>>>> who will speak next month on Long Island about his new dietary
theory.
>>>>
>>>> Richards' stem cell study will run for a year. Patients will range
>>>> between 18 and 70.
>>>>
>>>> CROHN'S DISEASE EXPLAINED
>>>>
>>>> Crohn's tends to run in families, and susceptibility genes have been
>>>> identified. People of Ashkenazi Jewish descent have a higher
incidence
>>>> compared with other ethnic groups. The disorder is not especially
>>>> prevalent among Sephardic Jews.
>>>>
>>>> First described in 1930 by Dr. Burrill Crohn of Mt. Sinai Hospital in
>>>> Manhattan. Before the 20th century there was no recorded evidence of
>>>> Crohn's or ulcerative colitis, both inflammatory bowel diseases.
>>>> Generally, colitis is viewed as serious, but not as devastating as
>>>> Crohn's.
>>>>
>>>> Crohn's is diagnosed more often in industrialized countries where
sugar
>>>> consumption is very high, and less so in underdeveloped countries,
>>>> though scientists note an increase worldwide. Some scientists think
>>>> excessive sugar consumption may affect the genetically susceptible to
>>>> Crohn's by altering the balance of bacteria that inhabit the
intestinal
>>>> tract.
>>>>
>>>> Long Island is dispro****tionately affected by people with Crohn's
>>>> disease, based on genetics and demographics. The Crohn's and Colitis
>>>> Foundation of America estimates 30,000 Long Islanders have Crohn's
>>>> disease, or ulcerative colitis. Nationwide, more than 1 million
people
>>>> have an inflammatory bowel disease.
>>>>
>>>> Copyright © 2008, Newsday Inc.
>>>>
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