Category Archives: Stem Cell Transplant

VANCOUVER Mai Duong, 34, only has six weeksleft to get a life-saving stem cell or bone marrow transplant and shes pleading with the Lower Mainlands Asian population tosave her. The mother of one was born and raised in Montreal. Shes had good health for most of her life, until she was diagnosed with leukemia in January 2013, while pregnant with her second child. Doctors told her she had to terminate the pregnancy she was at 15 weeks and start chemotherapy immediately. Duongwent into remission, but ten months later the cancer was back. And this time it was more aggressive and chemotherapy wouldnt work, she was told. Instead, she needed stem cells or a bone marrow transplant. Even though Im on the international registry list for donors, I did not have a match for the bone marrow. I was devastated when they told me that, she toldGlobal News. It turns out the problem of finding a match, and a perfect one at that, is more common among those of Asian descent. In 2012, 2-year-old Jeremy Kong of San Francisco was diagnosed with leukemia and couldnt find a match until he went public. After doing so, he found a nine out of … Continue reading →

Experts say a $15 million trial to explore stem cells from cord blood for treating autism is premature. Cold comfort: Researchers are trying to find out whether stem cells taken from frozen cord blood can improve autism symptoms. Credit:Tbsdy lives via Wikimedia Commons A team at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, is set to launch a $40 million clinical trial to explore stem cells from umbilical cord blood as a treatment for autism. But experts caution that the trial is premature. A $15 million grant from the Marcus Foundation, a philanthropic funding organization based in Atlanta, will bankroll the first two years of the five-year trial, which also plans to test stem cell therapy for stroke and cerebral palsy. The autism arm of the trial aims to enroll 390 children and adults. Joanne Kurtzberg, the trials lead investigator, has extensive experience studying the effectiveness of cord blood transplants for treating various disorders, such as leukemia and sickle cell anemia. Most recently, she showed that cord blood transplants can improve the odds of survival for babies deprived of oxygen at birth. A randomized trial of the approach for this condition is underway. To really sort out if [stem] cells can … Continue reading →

In hospital after a relapse of leukemia in May, Mai Duong, a Montrealer of Vietnamese descent, was told by her doctors that she would soon need a stem cell transplant. Finding a match wouldn't be easy, they said, because there is a dearth of compatible Asian donors in Quebec and worldwide. But Duong wasn't content to sit and wait in her hospital bed. "Instead of not doing anything, I told myself this is going to be a fight and this is going to be a fight that everybody is going to know," she said. In a video explaining her situation, Duong said she is having difficulty finding a comparable donor because ethnic groups are under-represented in the international (stem cell donor) registry. It seems we dont give out our stem cells and this is a huge problem. In Quebec, fewer than 0.5 per cent of the 47,000 registered stem cell donors are of Asian descent, Laurent-Paul Mnard, a spokesperson for Hma-Qubec, said. There is no registry in Vietnam. "On the international level, there's a similar problem because we're talking about 1.9 per cent of (Asian) donors in the American registry and 0.9 per cent in the international registry," he added. … Continue reading →

She had fought the illness for more than four years, Manchester Coroner's Court was told. Her death came despite undergoing stem cell transplant, and her family believe she would have survived if she had chemotherapy. But they said she would not have been able to become a mother, which she longed for. At the inquest, Dr Jim Cavet, consultant haematologist at Christie Hospital, Manchester, said Mrs Cockx deferred treatment in 2010 and in 2011, when she became pregnant. Dr Cavet met his patient to discuss her treatment plan throughout her pregnancy until she gave birth to Harriet via a C-section. Tests showed that after the birth of her daughter, the cancer had returned, but more aggressively than before. Dr Cavet told how the new mother put her daughters health first throughout, despite being in a pretty bad way after the birth. "Nicola was very concerned for Harriet and her health and was reluctant to have any chemotherapy even then," said Dr Cavet. "She did accept steroids and they dealt with the high levels of calcium but not the underlying myeloma." Mrs Cockx first realised she had a problem in June 2008 when she started limping. Here is the original post: … Continue reading →

; AP Photo/Agapito Sanchez, Baylor College of Medicine MONTREAL Finding a donor for a stem cell transplant is perhaps one of the most difficult things for a cancer patient. This is because stem cells are one of the few things that patients cannot rely on their immediate family to donate, according to to Doctor Silvy Lachance, Director of the stem cell transplant program at Hpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont. Of course, we first look within the family, she said. But there is only 25 per cent chance of identifying a donor. If we dont find a donor within the family, we try the international donor registry. According to the National Cancer Institute, bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cell transplantations are most commonly used to treat leukemia, lymphoma, neuroblastoma (a cancer that affects mostly infants and children) and multiple myeloma. While they wait for a compatible donor, patients will be assigned a conditioning regiment, which may include radiation. This conditioning regiment will be followed by the infusion of stem cells that are compatible with the recipient, said Lachance. Yet, for most ethnic minorities or anyone of mixed-birth, the chances of finding an anonymous donor remain very difficult. Here is the original post: The … Continue reading →

Autologous Stem Cell Transplants - Part 3 Diana Moore from Mater Health Services talks about the autologous stem cell transplant process - a common treatment option for people with lymphoma, myeloma,... By: LeukaemiaQld … Continue reading →

DEF LEPPARD's VIVIAN CAMPBELL To Receive Stem-Cell Transplant In September DEF LEPPARD's VIVIAN CAMPBELL To Receive Stem-Cell Transplant In September June 24, 2014 DEF LEPPARD guitarist Vivian Campbell will receive a stem-cell trans... By: Love is Pain … Continue reading →

July 11, 2014, 9 p.m. Multiple sclerosis sufferer Troy Eccleston will travel to Russia in September for risky but potentially life-saving treatment. Troy Eccleston, with fiancee Ainslie Sackey, is ready to go to Russia. Picture: SYLVIA LIBER Multiple sclerosis sufferer Troy Eccleston will travel to Russia in September for risky but potentially life-saving treatment. A controversial stem cell transplant is the last hope for the 47-year-old Albion Park Rail man whose symptoms have worsened in the last two years, leaving him confined to a wheelchair. Mr Eccleston was not eligible for a Sydney trial of haematopoietic stem cell transplantation due to his age and the advanced nature of his MS, but he has been accepted for treatment at the Pirogov Centre in Moscow. His fiancee Ainslie Sackey and family and friends are now busy fund-raising, with a target of $70,000 to pay for the 30-day treatment and associated transport costs. "Over the next two years it is expected I will grow a new immune system with no memory of MS." "The treatment involves injections to stimulate my bone marrow to release millions of stem cells, removing the cells and freezing them," Mr Eccleston said. "I will then be given large … Continue reading →

Autologous Stem Cell Transplants - Part 4 Diana Moore from Mater Health Services talks about the autologous stem cell transplant process - a common treatment option for people with lymphoma, myeloma,... By: LeukaemiaQld … Continue reading →

Autologous Stem Cell Transplants - Part 1 Diana Moore from Mater Health Services talks about the autologous stem cell transplant process - a common treatment option for people with lymphoma, myeloma,... By: LeukaemiaQld … Continue reading →