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Stem Cells
ADULT STEM CELL COLLECTION OFFERED TO OUR PATIENTS  As many of our patients are very aware,
we have been involved over the years in trying to be one step ahead of the game in offering meaningful preventative healthcare!
We started talking about antioxidants in
the early 1980's. We encouraged screening colonoscopies to prevent colon polyps from becoming colon cancers when Ronald Reagan had his colon cancer in 1986.
We started doing CAT Scans of Coronary Arteries a number of years ago, trying to identify people at higher risk for heart disease. We started looking at different LDL particle numbers,
rather than just at good cholesterol and bad cholesterol. These advances have enabled us to identify many previously unidentified high risk patients and we have effectively
prevented nearly all coronary incidents in our practice!
We started routine vitamin D screening and supplementation several years ago, and this is now becoming a topic of major
conversation. We started looking at natural supplements like alpha- lipoic acid, and l-acetyl carnitine, as anti-aging therapies. We started looking at male andropause options,
and at home sleep apnea monitoring.
We now have the ability to collect and store our patients' adult stem cells for future therapeutic use!
Most of us think of stem cells in conjunction with neonatal stem cells. Our children or grandchildren have babies, and we are told that for a few thousand dollars we can save some of
their neonatal stem cells. We also hear about moral controversies over destroying embryos and whether this a valid way to obtain stem cells for research purposes.
What most patients do not realize is that stem cells circulate in the body throughout the bloodstream. You are constantly making stem cells which replace cells including skin, liver,
heart, and cartilage! We make new cells to replenish cells that are aging and becoming dysfunctional.
As we get older, we have fewer and fewer of these circulating
stem cells, and the stem cells we have are not as good at evolving into other replacement cells. As we get older we don't reproduce as many skin cells. The skin cells don't make
as much collagen and the skin begins to sag.
We are now able to take the stem cells that are circulating and collect them and freeze them. Wouldn't that be a wonderful
insurance policy if they were available when we needed them for a serious problem later on?
Neostem, a national company, has asked me to be the first
physician in NYC to use their patent pending technique to collect and store my patients' adult stem cells. My wife, and I were the first to utilize this process in our office in November!
The earlier in life we do this, and the healthier we are, the larger the number of circulating stem cells and the more effective they are at transforming into other cells.
Stem cell therapies have actually been around for over 20 years at centers such as Sloan Kettering. Stem cell therapy has been used as an effective treatment for many cancers
including leukemias and myeloma. In cancer therapy it is like having a self -bone marrow transplant.
Recently, business and news publications have published many
articles pointing out the potential future medical and business implications of adult stem cells. Stem cells may be used to grow heart cells after a heart attack, cartilage cells for injured
knee cartilage, and for hundreds of other experimental applications. Many of these therapies are being performed in humans in other countries where there are fewer legal
restrictions. There are already experimental programs to treat autoimmune conditions like Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and diabetes. There are websites which
list all of the clinical trials involving stem cells trials in humans, and also in pets!
While I don't really know what will evolve out of the enormous
potential for stem cells, I do know is that if I can save stem cells when I'm 65 years old versus, saving them when I'm 75, I am better off collecting them when there are more of them and
they have more potential functionality.
So, is it not wise to store your stems cells now if cost is not an issue? Stem cell retrieval and storage is expensive, but as an
insurance policy against all sorts of very unpleasant medical conditions, it's quite a reasonable investment. For about $15,000 over a 5 year period, or $3000 per year, the process
is a lot more reasonable than virtually anything else you could do to protect yourself from random events such as incapacitating heart attacks, viruses that damage your heart,
viruses that trigger leukemia, and all sorts of other uncontrollable medical worries. Also, if there was an unanticipated radiation exposure, i.e. a dirty bomb, there would be serious bone marrow damage.
I hope my patients never need their saved stem cells. But how much might one be willing to pay for security and peace of mind by knowing you have your own stem cells stored in a
secure environment with the neonatal stem cells of your children? One of our patients is the lawyer for the Neostem Organization. She has approached me to have exclusive rights
to this process on the upper east side of NYC, based on our patient demographics, our practice size, and our desire to stay ahead of the medical curve.
I am excited and honored to have this opportunity. I will be discussing this process with selected patients within the practice. If interested for yourself, your families, or others in
your business environment, contact me at dryaffe@yafferuden.com. I have extensive scientific and lay information available. We will only be able to do this procedure
on 4 patients per week, as the collection process takes about 4 hours. As the process catches on, we will be able to purchase additional equipment and expand availability. If
interested, let me know sooner rather than later, as I expect we will reach capacity quickly.
Bruce H. Yaffe MD
212-879-4700, ext #6259 (Vera)
Dr. Yaffe's Personal Update Further Stem Cell InformationCurrent Stem Cell News |
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