NC State Is First University in Nation to Offer Canine Bone Marrow TransplantsSeptember 04, 2008Dogs suffering from lymphoma will be able to receive the same type of medical treatment as their human counterparts, as North Carolina State University becomes the first university in the nation to offer canine bone marrow transplants in a clinical setting. Dr. Steven Suter, assistant professor of oncology in NC State's College of Veterinary Medicine, received three leukophoresis machines donated by the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Leukophoresis machines are designed to harvest healthy stem cells from cancer patients. The machines are used in conjunction with drug therapy to harvest stem cells that have left the patient's bone marrow and entered the bloodstream. The harvested cancer-free cells are then reintroduced into the patient after total body radiation is used to kill residual cancer cells left in the body. This treatment is called peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. The machines, once used for human patients, are suitable for canine use without modification, as bone marrow therapy protocols for people were originally developed using dogs.
"It's not a new technology, it's just a new application of an existing technology," Suter says. "Doctors have been treating human patients with bone marrow transplantation for many years, and there have been canine patient transplants performed in a research setting for about 20 years, but it's never been feasible as a standard therapy until now." Canine lymphoma is one of the most common types of cancer in dogs, but the survival rate with current treatments is extremely low. Peripheral blood stem cell transplantation, in conjunction with chemotherapy, has raised human survival rates considerably, and it is hoped that dogs will see the same benefits. "We know that dogs who have received bone marrow transplants have a cure rate of at least 30 percent versus about 0 to 2 percent for dogs who don't receive the transplants," Suter adds. "The process itself is painless for dogs - the only thing they lose is a bit of body heat while the cells are being harvested." North Carolina State University Science News and Science Current Events Tag Cloud This tag cloud is a visual representation of term frequencies of random science news topics with common terms grouped together and emphasized by their display size. Angiogenesis Solar Cells Puberty Arrhythmia Knee Replacement Glioblastoma Aneurysm Fatty Acids Chlamydia Cancer Drug Wine Dementia Diarrhea Cancer Survival Cancer Blood Clots Arctic Ice MRI Wildfires Childhood Cancer Ozone Hole Supernovae Exoplanet Spinal Cord Injury Flu Vaccine
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Related Bone Marrow Transplants Current Events and Bone Marrow Transplants News Articles Blood stem cell growth factor reverses memory decline in mice A human growth factor that stimulates blood stem cells to proliferate in the bone marrow reverses memory impairment in mice genetically altered to develop Alzheimer's disease, researchers at the University of South Florida and James A. Haley Hospital found. Immune exhaustion driven by antigen in chronic viral infection A main reason why viruses such as HIV or hepatitis C persist despite a vigorous initial immune response is exhaustion. The T cells, or white blood cells, fighting a chronic infection eventually wear out. Scientists identify key gene that protects against leukemia Researchers have identified a gene that controls the rapid production and differentiation of the stem cells that produce all blood cell types-a discovery that could eventually open the door to more streamlined treatments for leukemia and other blood cancers, in which blood cells proliferate out of control. A New Way to Assemble Cells into 3-D Microtissues Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory can now control how cells connect with one another in vitro and assemble themselves into three-dimensional, multicellular microtissues. The researchers demonstrated their method by constructing a tailor-made artificial cell-signaling system, analogous to natural cell systems that communicate via growth factors. Research on the effects of stem cell source and patient age on transplantation outcomes Blood cancers - leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma - are typically treated with a combination of treatments including chemotherapy, biological therapy, radiation therapy, and stem cell transplantation. Stem cell transplantation is the process by which blood stem cells are collected from a donor, or from the patient prior to chemotherapy, and then infused into the patient after treatment. Children's Hospital study demonstrates how bone marrow transplant can cure sickle cell disease A unique approach to bone marrow transplantation pioneered in part by a Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC physician has proven to be the only safe and effective cure for sickle cell disease, according to a new study. Protein key to control, growth of blood cells New research sheds light on the biological events by which stem cells in the bone marrow develop into the broad variety of cells that circulate in the blood. The findings may help improve the success of bone marrow transplants and may lead to better treatments for life-threatening blood diseases. Ability to track stem cells in tumors could advance cancer treatments Using noninvasive molecular imaging technology, a method has been developed to track the location and activity of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in the tumors of living organisms. Immune molecule that plays a powerful role in avoiding organ rejection identified When a mouse's immune system is deciding whether to reject a skin graft, one powerful member of a molecular family designed to provoke such a response can effectively reduce the visibility of the mouse's own cells and help the graft survive, researchers say. Tumor-targeting viral therapy slows neuroblastoma, malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors Researchers in a multi-institutional study led by Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center slowed the growth of two particularly stubborn solid tumor cancers - neuroblastoma and peripheral nerve sheath tumors -without harming healthy tissues by inserting instructions to inhibit tissue growth into an engineered virus. More Bone Marrow Transplants Current Events and Bone Marrow Transplants News Articles |
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