Did anyone watch 60 Minutes?

[ICNDonna]

I was totally impressed by a report on 60 Minutes I saw last night. If anyone missed it, they showed a rat which was paralyzed in the back legs. They then showed the same rat, after being injected with stem cells and the rat was actually running on those back legs. I was sitting there thinking that if they can actually heal damaged nerve cells, maybe they could also heal damaged bladder cells? Somehow I saw it as real progress and I'm eager to see if it works when they try it on people.

I see it as another avenue of hope!

Donna

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Yes, I missed part, but it was an excellent show. There is a clinical trial coming up that is different than stem cells, and it is called the neo-bladder, in which a new bladder is formed by regeneration medicine from a persons own cells. Pretty cool! If I didn't have so many other health problems, I would be lining up for the upcoming human clinical trial. The company is Tengion and the hospital conducting the human clinical trials is Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC. They used to have an article up, but is doesn't appear to be there right now.

To me this type of new medical treatment being developed is so wonderful. I hope it works. Stem cells seem so close, yet so far off that is sometimes a huge amount of hope or just plain frustrating. I hope for all of us that stem cell treatments aren't 10 years off. LOL! I just seem to be getting older.

Donna, thank you for starting this thread! I would like to keep this thread going. It is a very interesting conversation. Would love to hear if any one else has contributions. There will be a day when there is no longer this icon on our board :toilet: , perhaps the toliet will have a big red X accross it meaning it doesn't dominate our lives any longer -- when a cure has been found.

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[tigger_gal]

I missed it, but it sure sounded great. thank you for sharing.. hopefully I can find an artical.

[creatingkarma]

I missed the show, but just wanted to say that I received a survey from my state representative asking questions about stem cell research. The rep is wanting everyone's thoughts on whether it should be banned in Missouri or not. I put definitely not! Stem cell research is a ball that needs to be rolling!!! I believe that it will find answers & cures for many diseases.

[hollipop]

I missed it, but that is so awesome! My husband and I donated three frozen blastocysts (5 day old embryos) to stem cell research last year, so I'm always interested in knowing about any results like that. It almost brings tears of joy to me and warms my heart.

[dancemomof2]

I seen it, wouldn't that be great if it would heal our bladders as well.

[Sarojini]

I didn't see it, but I think I know the guy they may have interviewed, and I saw this rat video at a conference a few years ago when he was first starting these experiments. It is an amazing video and I hope they can get it working in more models -- currently it only works in that particular rat spinal cord model, but doesn't work in other types of rats, mice, or paralyzed humans who have volunteered for stem cell trials.

It's great progress, but we have a long way to go in understanding why that one model works, and what to do to make it work in other species and in other types of damage recovery.

:)

[LizGrirl]

Check it out!

http://www.tengion.com/library/press_20060109.cfm

I read your post and did a search on the web. This article has me in tears of joy!

[sandramac]

Donna i watched the same show and was thinking the same thing!Sandra