This article appeared today in the Rocky Mountain News. Sam Adams wrote the article and it appeared in the Sports Section. He can be contacted at 303-943-2623 or adamss@RockyRockyMountainNews.com I had no clue that this company was in my own back yard.I am encouraged by its contents because all stem cell news is good news to me, but at the same time saddened that I had to leave the U.S. to receive stem cell therapy for my terminal disease. Here is the article in its entirety:
Curiosity about two words led me to the Denver Athletic Club on Thursday morning. Stem Cells. Denver-based Regenerative Sciences Inc. formally introduced its new nonsurgical Regenexx procedure, which uses stem cells from a patient to regenerate bone and cartilage for painful orthopedic conditions.
Doctors extract stem cells by needle from the patient's hip, grow the cells in culture at a lab and then reimplant them. Currently, the procedure is available only in Colorado.
Even though the focus was on the relief Regenexx can provide the general public, my first thoughts drifted to how the procedure can aid injury recoveries for professional and college athletes.
"In fact, being young and athletic in this particular procedure--very similar to microfracture (surgery)--is an advantage," said Dr. Christopher Centeno, creator of Regenexx. Centeno practices in Denver and Boulder. "I could certainly see that, if you're in a situation where you have an injured cartilage or injured ligament within the knee, this would allow you to have much less downtime, certainly, than some of the bigger procedures where you're not going to be back to your sport for three months or so.
"It's going to introduce a very different concept. Right now, we wait until the part completely wears out, we try to manage it as best we can, and then we replace it. This is going to shift the playing field to very early, at the first sign of an injury."
Mathew Fulton, president of Regenerative Sciences, told me the New York Mets have shown particular interest in stem-cell research for rotator-cuff injuries, which is ongoing at Colorado State University.
You can register to Speak Up! on this topic at Rocky-Mountainnews.com/sports
Curiosity about two words led me to the Denver Athletic Club on Thursday morning. Stem Cells. Denver-based Regenerative Sciences Inc. formally introduced its new nonsurgical Regenexx procedure, which uses stem cells from a patient to regenerate bone and cartilage for painful orthopedic conditions.
Doctors extract stem cells by needle from the patient's hip, grow the cells in culture at a lab and then reimplant them. Currently, the procedure is available only in Colorado.
Even though the focus was on the relief Regenexx can provide the general public, my first thoughts drifted to how the procedure can aid injury recoveries for professional and college athletes.
"In fact, being young and athletic in this particular procedure--very similar to microfracture (surgery)--is an advantage," said Dr. Christopher Centeno, creator of Regenexx. Centeno practices in Denver and Boulder. "I could certainly see that, if you're in a situation where you have an injured cartilage or injured ligament within the knee, this would allow you to have much less downtime, certainly, than some of the bigger procedures where you're not going to be back to your sport for three months or so.
"It's going to introduce a very different concept. Right now, we wait until the part completely wears out, we try to manage it as best we can, and then we replace it. This is going to shift the playing field to very early, at the first sign of an injury."
Mathew Fulton, president of Regenerative Sciences, told me the New York Mets have shown particular interest in stem-cell research for rotator-cuff injuries, which is ongoing at Colorado State University.
You can register to Speak Up! on this topic at Rocky-Mountainnews.com/sports