New York Times reports 3 patients going blind after stem cells. Dr.Kondrot responds, “You need to be careful and select the right doctor, right type of stem cell and the right delivery method or you will be at a grave risk!” This evening, we’re going to talk about a serious event that occurred in Florida. I was shocked when I read the article in The New York Times Magazine. The article is “Patients Lose Sight After Stem Cells are Injected Into Their Eyes.” The article dealt with three patients who had received stem cells in a facility in Florida. Article from the New York Times Newspaper Retinal Damage Listen to the recording of the show! https://healingtheeye.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/KFNX-Stem-Cells-0317.mp3 First of all, I was shocked because I am doing stem cells for the eye. I am really concerned because this article is bad press to a procedure that can help many individuals. There was a problem with this study. There was a problem with how these stem cells were administered. I’d like to give you my opinion. First, these stem cells were autologous stem cells from the fat tissue. There are many different ways of obtaining stem cells. Autologous stem cells are probably the most common. They are obtained from the patient’s bone marrow or abdominal fat. They’re processed, and then they’re injected into the tissue or bloodstream to put back into the person. There are a couple of problems with this. If you’re in your 70s or 80s and they’re taking stem cells from your body, these are going to be old stem cells, and they may not have much in the way of regenerative properties. Another type of stem cell is called cord or placenta. These are cells obtained from the placenta or cord of a newborn baby. They are extremely potent stem cells. Some people estimate that they may be a thousand times more potent. You can see that the type of stem cells is something to consider when receiving stem cells for any condition. The problem that may have occurred at this facility where these three people were blinded was the processing of the stem cells. Taking the abdominal cell and not processing probably can leave toxic material in them. Later on in the show, we’ll have Dr. David Steenblock who is an authority on stem cells. As a matter of fact, he’s the author of a book about cord stem cells. He’ll be joining me at the bottom of the hour. Another problem is the training in this facility. These were not ophthalmologists or eye surgeons that administered them to the eye. In fact, the article stated that a nurse practitioner injected them into the eye. That is important. You should have someone highly qualified, trained, and knowledgeable with that particular area that the stem cells are being administered. It’s common sense that if you’re dealing with the eye, you should have an eye surgeon or eye doctor administer these cells, not a nurse practitioner, GP, or internist. I am an expert when it comes to the eye, but if I’m going to be injecting stem cells into the spine or knee, I probably don’t have any business doing that. I’m not knowledgeable with the anatomy, and I don’t have any experience. The last issue is the way these stem cells were injected. I am using two methods for introducing stem cells into the body. One is intravenous, which I feel is the safest. It goes into the bloodstream, circulates in the body, and is slowly absorbed. The second way is retrobulbar. This is an injection that goes under the eye, not into the eye. It’s in an area very close the macula and optic nerve. In this situation, I’m not sure if the stem cells were intentionally injected into the eye or inadvertently in the course of a retrobulbar injection they got into the eye. Either way, it was a tragic event. In some situations, eye doctors will inject stem cells into the eye, but it should be done under supervision, and the doctor should be highly qualified. I am not injecting stem cells directly into the eye because of my concern of an increased risk of infection or complications. As a physician, our number-one oath states that we shall do no harm to the patient. It is rather tragic that this event occurred, and I think it brings up several important lessons for those of you who might be considering stem cells not only for your eye but for any other part of your body. I have produced a webinar event which goes over in detail all aspects of stem cells for eye disease. You can go to www.EyeStemCell.org. This is a comprehensive webinar that goes over in detail several key things: timing of stem cells, the best stem cells, the best candidate for stem cells, who should be delivering the stem cells, and many other aspects you need to know not only if you’re considering stem cells for your eye but for any other part of your body. I have come up with a mnemonic. I am going to be talking about each one of these during the course of the radio show. The mnemonic is STEM CELL. S stands for the selection of the stem cells. By that, I mean the type of stem cells. T is the timing. We’re going to talk about that in a little bit more detail. The timing is important because if you have a lung infection or sinus infection and you receive stem cells, they are going to take care of that infection and not take care of the part of the body you may want to be treated. E is education. I’m talking about education of the doctor. Are they trained in administering stem cells? Do they specialize in that particular area? M is the method of injection. We’ll talk about the different types of methods. C is continued growth. What can we do to keep those stem cells growing in the body? E is extracellular nutrients. It’s like a farmer when he buys expensive seeds. He needs to have good, rich soil, water, and sunlight for those seeds to grow. It’s very similar to stem cells in the body. You need to have the nutrients. L stands for light. We’re going to talk about light therapy that has been shown to stimulate stem cells. L stands for low-level microcurrent. Believe it or not, frequencies have been patented that have been shown to stimulate the growth of stem cells and help release certain factors to keep those stem cells growing. If you just joined us, we’re talking about the tragedy that occurred in Florida with three patients who went blind after stem cells. This should not have happened. Later on, we’re going to have some experts joining us to talk about this complication. If you want more information, go to www.EyeStemCell.org. We’re coming up to a break. We’ll be right back. You’re listening to “Healthy Vision.” Welcome back to “Healthy Vision.” This is your host, Dr. Edward Kondrot. We’re talking about stem cells and risks that you should be aware of. With me is Mike Basich, a representative of a stem cell manufacturing company. Mike, it’s great to have you on “Healthy Vision.” Mike: Thank you for having me. Dr. Kondrot: It’s a tragedy that occurred with those three folks in Florida. It’s a tragedy that should not have occurred. It’s very upsetting to me, and I want to get your opinion on how this could have been prevented. What is your take on it? Mike: You couldn’t be more right. It is tragedy. I don’t know all the ins and outs of how it might have been presented. One thing I can say for sure is that if the individuals who were treating these folks would have followed the same guidelines that the company I represent follows, the FDA guidelines, this would never have occurred. Dr. Kondrot: What are the FDA guidelines? Mike: The FDA guidelines for autologous cells, because these were from their own body, are that they need to be clean and tested. They need to be administered by a licensed physician. The article I read indicated that none of those things occurred. It’s an unfortunate tragedy. My understanding is that a nurse practitioner administered these cells, there were contaminants in them, and they were the wrong cells to use in that application. That was my understanding from the article. Dr. Kondrot: This is really unfortunate because the day that study came out, I had several people in my office ready to receive stem cells. I had to explain that we do not use stem cells from the fat. We do not process that. Any time a physician prepares stem cells in his office, there’s always a risk of contamination and other issues which may develop. One of the reasons I use BioBurst is that your company is an FDA-monitored company. You only use cord stem cells. There’s a strict processing quality control. Maybe you could talk about the requirements your company has in order to deliver these stem cells. Mike: We have to follow FDA guidelines. For screening, it’s for disease, bioburden, and drugs or chemicals of any kind of that nature. Dr. Kondrot: That’s a good point. One of the concerns all my patients have is, “How do I know this is a healthy baby? How do I know the mother doesn’t have some heredity disease that might be transferred to me?” You really investigate this. Mike: We investigate it very thoroughly. These cells are homologous. They are taken from a donor and given to a recipient. In our particular instance, the red blood cells and the Class 1 and Class 2 antigens are removed, so they are considered DNA neutral and immune privileged. There’s no chance of DNA material being passed along there. In addition to that, there’s also a process at a CLIA-approved lab, which is an FDA-certified laboratory. Our company as a whole is monitored on a regular basis by the FDA. There are very strict guidelines we must follow to process these cells. Dr. Kondrot: What advice do you give to patients? The marketplace is very confusing. Everyone is advertising stem cells. It upsets me because people think a stem cell injection or delivery is going to be an instant cure. It’s not
