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YaffeRuden Stem Cell Update On November 22, 2008,
Karen Yaffe, my wife, spent four hours in our office on 65th
St. During that time, approximately 300 million adult stem cells were collected from her left arm. An hour later, we went out to dinner. Karen became the first person in the history of
New York City to collect her own adult stem cells (and other components her immune system) exclusively to be used preventatively
when these healthy all-purpose cells are needed for 'self-use' in the future. The possibilities are endless! For non-preventative purposes, leukemia and myeloma patients have had their stem cells
collected at Sloan Kettering for twenty years for the purpose of bone marrow transplantation. So this collecting process has been around for a long time. These patients are dependent on finding stem cells
that "match" their own, either from a donor or from cord blood stem cells. However a condition known as 'graft versus host disease' often occurs because these 'other people' donor cells are not a 100%
match. Graft versus host reactions are life-threatening conditions requiring use of powerful immunosuppressive drugs. Getting one's own stem cells obviously provides a perfect match
and avoids this problem! What are stem cells? And why would Karen consider spending a 'one-time four hour stem cell collection', and about 1500 dollars per year for the first 10 years of storage,
to have 300 million of her stem cells collected and stored? (Actually financed at $3000/year for five years covering the cost of the collection and the first 10 years of storage.) Stem cells
are produced throughout the body, and are immature, self-renewing cells that have the potential to be turned into brain cells, heart cells, skin cells, breast cells, blood cells and every other kind of cell. As we
age, there are fewer of these cells and they become less functional. If we get sick or we smoke they become less capable. As we age, we try to replace cells that naturally age or are injured by sickness or
trauma. Ultimately, injuries outpace our ability for stem cells to replace our injured cells, and we age and deteriorate. So if we collect these stem cells when we are healthy, store them, and have them for
future use when we otherwise might not have enough of them, we increase our chances of healing injured or aging tissues. Other than for cancer therapies, have there been any proven practical uses of stem
cells? Under the last eight years of the Bush administration, there has been limited federal funding of stem cell research, and it takes years for the FDA to approve therapies. Yet, there are over 2000 clinical
trials of stem cell therapies ongoing in the US. ( www.clinicaltrials.gov). Many US researchers have been experimenting with stem cell therapies in Mexico, China, Korea, Thailand, Costa Rica, Japan and elsewhere.
Thousands of patients from the US have traveled to get therapy. I am in the process of establishing a relationship with a facility in Cancun, Mexico run by leading US trained physicians in stem cell
therapies, who have already administered over 1000 therapies with 'autologous' (self-collected) stem cells for conditions ranging from knee cartilage damage, to rheumatologic diseases, to neurologic conditions.
Medical Tourism is becoming a very large industry and growing industry. At the present time, many of the stem cell therapies used in other countries often are obtained from unknown
sources and there is little regulatory oversight. There are definite advantages to 'bringing your own stem cells'. Years of cartilage wear and tear leads to a arthritis in the knee due to bone rubbing
on bone. We are already familiar with several patients who have benefited from having their own stem cells injected into their remaining knee cartilage with great clinical benefit, thereby avoiding the need for total
knee replacement. We also know of a young patient who had a bad virus which involved the heart tissue leaving him in heart failure necessitating a heart transplant. He went to the University of Pittsburgh
where they injected stem cells into his coronary arteries. His heart grew new cells, much of his heart function has been restored, and a transplant became unnecessary! Almost daily, there are articles in
the news about clinical advances using stem cell therapies. In the recent weeks, a woman in Spain had her trachea replaced after it was rebuilt with her own stem cells. A medial meniscus tear was healed
using stem cells in a British soccer player. The Wall Street Journal reported on stem cells used in breast augmentation surgery in Japan and Europe. Forbes had a cover story in June, "Stems cells
are ready for prime time". It is very clear that there is enormous potential for rebuilding damaged and worn out body parts using stem cells. Pfizer recently invested 100 million dollars in
stem cell therapy research. The U. S. military invested 250 million dollars for wound healing research and with the eventual goal of limb re-growth in injured soldiers! The Obama administration has indicated
that it would focus on rapidly advancing stem cell research in an effort to keep the USA in the forefront of medical advances. Look up 'Regenerative Medicine Institutes' in Google and you will see that Harvard,
Stanford, Duke, UCSF, Pittsburgh, and many other centers have developed centers of Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine. There are 621,000 references in Google. Undoubtedly, this is the future of
medicine. And if so, why wouldn't everyone who can afford it want to have their own stem cells banked for future use? We all eventually get some kind of medical problem. It stands to reason that
from 25 to 85, it can help to have a valuable collection of healthy reparative cells available to be directed to a site in need. And they are your own cells, so there is no danger of immunologic reaction.
And we know these cells can be stored almost indefinitely with minimal breakdown in function. Are there other ways to obtain one's own stem cells? Are all stem cells the same? Recent research
suggests that we can obtain stem cells from testicles and from hair follicles which can be manipulated into 'induced' stem cells through the use of different viruses or chemical interventions. It is a very
inefficient process with only about one millionth of the cells induced into becoming stem cells, and it is a very labor-intensive process. Because the cells need to be manipulated, it will be years before we know
if these manipulated cells behave safely, and a long time before FDA approval. The cost involved will obviously be considerably more than a simple four hour collection procedure. There are many types of stem
cells including embryonic pluripotent stem cells, hematopoietic stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, and endothelial progenitor stem cells. All of them can be obtained from a four hour blood collection after two days of
bone marrow stimulation with Neupogen. Blood is removed from one arm, goes through a collection machine (apharesis), and is returned through an IV in the other arm. This type of procedure would
certainly be the most cost-efficient, safe, painless, non-invasive natural way to obtain the cells necessary to reconstitute one's own immune system and bone marrow. In the indefinite future, I see no
disadvantage other than cost and four painless hours for virtually every one to have their stem cells collected and stored! Umbilical cord stem cells have been collected in our babies, only there have been very
few occasions (fortunately) where these have been used. Many have questioned whether it is a worthwhile expense, since the number of cells collected is few, and babies outgrow their potential to use them by
early elementary school. The stem cells we have collected will last indefinitely, at nearly their present level of age health, and function, and can be used potentially to heal or re-grow almost any
damaged organ years into the future! Hence, I, Dr. Yaffe, was the second to have my cells collected, the day after my wife, while watching a Giants game (we have computer, TV and DVD availability), using the phone
and the computer, being fed cheese, crackers, and fruit. I had one hand immobilized to an IV, and the other fully functional. There was no discomfort and I was fully functional. A very
'non-event'. The third person collected was the head of the infectious disease department from a prominent Boston hospital! In the near future, we are considering having a second
unit in the collection room so that husbands and wives, friends, or business colleagues, can be collected simultaneously. A funny way to have a four hour 'business meeting'. It is an expensive
for me to get involved in this project given the time commitment, the cost of equipment, the space which could be used for seeing other patients, the cost of the apharesis nurses administering the collection, and
other administrative costs. I am taking this on because I really feel it offers a path to being involved in the future of medicine on the ground floor, and I am very excited. We are now ready
to start scheduling and collecting stem cells starting after the new year in those of you who have expressed interest. Please email me at eowfe@yafferuden.com to either sign up, ask questions, or have someone from the Neostem company contact you.We will perform collections on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday afternoons from 2PM to 6PM, and Saturday mornings 8:30AM to 12:30PM, and we will be scheduling from January 2nd through December 2009. By calling or emailing Neostem (www.neostem.com), all questions can be answered. Billing is handled entirely by Neostem. Yaffe, Ruden and Associates serves as the exclusive Neostem collection center for New
York City. Neostem is a publicly traded company that has started four other collection centers in Florida, on Long Island, in Las Vegas, and in LA.Since we can at this time, only perform four procedures per
week, and since Neostem is providing many patients, we are reserving two spots per week for patients and their families in our practice. If demand warrants, I will consider investing in additional space and
equipment. Check out Neostem, learn about stem cells, and do a Google search on clinical uses of adult stem cells. This is ultimately the most-cost effective 'insurance' you can purchase. I have
been approached to purchase long-term care insurance for myself and my wife at a cost of $6000 apiece per year. I figure that a stem cell collection cost of $1500 per year amortized over the first ten years, and
there will probably be a storage price drop as the procedure becomes more widespread. That would leave $4500 per year cash for gym membership, supplements, and a ski or golf vacation for the same price.
A much more optimistic view of life! If you plan to be in the first group collected in the next few months, let me ask you to call Neostem, 1-888-783-6226, or email enrollment@Neostem.com
to ask them questions and start the process. Obviously, I am also able to answer any non-financial questions. Bruce Yaffe MD dryaffe@yafferuden.com oreowfe@yafferuden.com 12/21/2008 |
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