new adult stem cell treatment

SPINAL cord injury sufferers have been given fresh hope of improved movement with the first Australian trial of a new adult stem cell treatment.

The trial will be conducted at a new dedicated spinal cord laboratory at Melbourne's St Vincent's Hospital, the first of its kind in Australia to co-ordinate national and international research and apply it to patients.

Every day sees a new spinal cord injury in Australia, with the cost of care estimated at $1.2 billion a year and no cure in sight.

"This is a major unmet medical need," said Dr George Owen, head of Step Ahead Australia, (formerly the Spinal Cord Society of Australia). Dr Owen's son, Sam, 26, became a quadriplegic 13 years ago after diving into a shallow pool.

But the trial of a spinal cord "self-repair kit" using adult stem cells, based on a discovery by a West Australian expert, may provide new leads.

Source - Herald and Weekly Times

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