Cord Lining

Skeletal repair

• Therapy for knee cartilage damage was performed by Dr Kevin Lee of NUH Orthopaedic Surgery in Singapore.
• Since 2006, 35 patients with worn knee cartilage have received autologous ex-vivo expanded bone marrow MSCs injections.
• The quality of life of the patients was reported to have improved, with some regaining the ability to climb stairs and experiencing less pain.

Co-transplantation of MSCs and HSCs

• Sydney Scott was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia at 13 weeks old in 2002.
• Baby Sydney was treated with chemotherapy, followed by cord blood and MSC co-transplantation – a world’s first.
• MSCs were thought to have enabled blood stem cell engraftment.
• Baby Sydney was relapse and medication free at the time of report.

Source: University of Minnesota, Paediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Centre

Heart attack

• 69 patients with acute myocardial infarction after percutaneous coronary intervention were randomly assigned to either a bone marrow MSC injection or a saline control group
• MSCs were injected into patients’ damaged heart sites following angioplasty
• At three months, the proportion of patients with functional defects in the MSC group was significantly lower than in the pre-transplantation and control groups

Source: University of Minnesota, Paediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Centre

Stroke

• 18 stroke patients who had their first stroke 6 months to 3 years before were given modified MSCs derived from the bone marrow of two donors.
• Patients showed signs of recovery within a month of the procedure, which lasted for several months.
• Patients who were previously in wheelchairs began to walk after the treatment, according to principal investigator Dr. Gary Steinberg.

Source: Steinberg GK, Kondziolka D, Wechsler LR, et al. Clinical outcomes of transplanted modified bone marrow–derived mesenchymal stem cells in stroke: A Phase 1/2A study. Stroke. 2016;47(7):1817-1824.
Source: Medical News Today newsletter. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/310769.php.

Heart failure

• 30 patients with heart failure were given either allogeneic MSC derived from umbilical cords or a placebo intravenously.
• Patients who received MSCs showed sustained and significant improvement compared to the placebo group, resulting in higher quality of life.
• The study established that the infusions were safe and had no negative effects.

Source: University of Minnesota, Paediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Centre
Source: ScienceDaily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170926162309.htm. Last assessed 12 September 2018.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

• 24 COVID-19 patients were enrolled in the study at random.
• MSCs derived from the umbilical cord were given to 12 patients twice as treatment, while the rest received standard medical care.
• More than half of the MSC patients were discharged within two weeks, and more than 80% recovered within a month.

Source: Giacomo L, Elina L, Diego C, et al. Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells for COVID-19 acute respiratory distress syndrome: A double-blind, phase 1/2A, randomized controlled trial. Stem Cells Transl. Med. 2021;1–14.
Source: Umbilical cord stem cells may reduce risk of death in severe COVID-19 patients. Phillyvoice website. https://www.phillyvoice.com/stem-cell-therapy-covid-19-umbilical-cord/. Last accessed April 1, 2021.

Osteochondral defect

• 72 patients were followed for at least 10 years after receiving either autologous bone marrow-derived MSCs or autologous chondrocyte implantation to treat osteochondral defects.
• After cartilage repair surgery, all patient-reported outcome scores improved, and no patients in either group developed a deep infection or tumour during the follow-up period.

Source: Teo A, Wong KL, Shen L, et al. Equivalent 10-year outcomes after implantation of autologous bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells versus autologous chondrocyte implantation for chondral defects of the knee. Am J Sports Med. DOI: 10.1177/0363546519867933.