Patients with chronic lung disease are at risk for oxygen deprivation, including hypoxemia (low oxygen in the blood) or hypoxia (lack of oxygen in the body's tissues). Such conditions are dangerous to human health and life. That is why the treatment of lung diseases is an important task of modern medicine. Specialists from the Lung Institute presented solutions in the field of regenerative medicine, namely the treatment of lung diseases with stem cells.
- Treatment of lung diseases with stem cells: general information
- How stem cells help in treatment of lung diseases
Treatment of lung diseases with stem cells: general information
The treatment methods proposed by the Lung Institute can be used to combat lung diseases such as:
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease);
- pulmonary fibrosis;
- Chronical bronchitis;
- emphysema;
- interstitial lung diseases.
Follow us on Instagram !
Doctors at the Lung Institute are successfully using a revolutionary, minimally invasive method of treating lung diseases with stem cells. Transplantation of autologous stem cells and platelet-rich plasma promotes healing of damaged lung tissue.
Therapy consists of three main steps:
- Extracting a patient's stem cells from the blood or bone marrow.
- Stem cell separation.
- Reintroducing stem cells into the body (intravenously or through an inhaler), where they promote natural healing of lung tissue and suppress inflammation.
Stem cells are living building blocks that have the ability to self-heal and reproduce.
A stem cell can form any type of tissue in the body. Plasticity is a key function of stem cells in regenerative medicine, allowing cells from one organ to create tissue for another organ.
Read also: What symptoms indicate the development of eye tuberculosis
To treat lung diseases, the Lung Institute uses patients’ own (autologous) stem cells obtained from:
- blood;
- bone marrow.
How stem cells get into the lungs
When a drug, blood, or stem cells is injected intravenously into the body, the injected substance enters directly into the right chamber of the heart. With one or two heartbeats, the substance enters directly into the lungs, after which the blood carries the said substance throughout the body.
However, in the case of stem cells, this process looks a little different. Research conducted by the National Institutes of Health has shown that stem cells are transported and retained in the lungs through this process. This phenomenon is called a “pulmonary trap,” and it helps slow the progression of chronic lung diseases.
How stem cells help treat lung diseases
In chronic lung diseases, the function of this vital organ gradually deteriorates. Unfortunately, the outcome of COPD, interstitial lung disease and pneumoconiosis is often fatal.
Read also: Note for travelers: Ebola virus
Treatment of lung diseases using stem cells, although not a panacea, helps not only relieve symptoms, but also speed up the patient’s recovery.
Once the stem cells are trapped in the lung, they begin to form healthy lung tissue. The results obtained during the research speak for themselves:
- in more than 70% of patients the quality of life improves;
- in many patients the amount of oxygen used (as part of oxygen therapy) is reduced;
- Some patients experience improvement in pulmonary function test results.
Therefore, treatment of lung diseases using stem cells can be an excellent addition to traditional methods of combating such diseases.
More interesting videos on our YouTube channel!
Share:
Add a comment