Experimental stem cell therapy shows early promise for Parkinson’s patients!
LOS ANGELES (KABC) — A new stem cell treatment may offer hope for Parkinson’s disease. Keck Medicine of USC is investigating a unique therapy that aims to repair damaged brain cells
Four months after neurosurgeons implanted specialized stem cells into Elizabeth Mendoza’s brain, she noticed a positive change in her Parkinson’s disease symptoms.
“I feel good. I feel better than I have in a while,” she said.
Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that impacts more than a million Americans.
It can also cause muscle stiffness and affect balance and walking. Mendoza’s tremors started in 2019.
“The tremors occur when the limb is at rest,” said Keck Medicine of USC neurologist and co-principal investigator, Dr. Xenos Mason.
He said the risk for Parkinson’s increases in those 60 or older, but doctors are finding it in younger people. Some studies suggest pesticides and pollution may play a role.
“There is an increase in Parkinson’s that we don’t understand that is probably related to something in the environment over the last 30 or 40 years,” he said.
The condition occurs when the brain doesn’t produce enough of the neurochemical dopamine.
“In Parkinson’s disease when that dopamine is lost, movements are inhibited,” said Mason.
While medications help Mendoza make more dopamine, it doesn’t slow the progression and can cause side effects.
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Read More: https://tinyurl.com/Parkinsons-Health
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