DEC. 29, 2004 | A study using adult bone marrow stem cells injected into the heart of patients suffering from congestive heart failure opens the door to the possibilities of stem cell treatments, a Texas cardiologist said recently at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS)

James T. Willerson, M.D., president of the Texas Health Science Center at Houston and president-elect of the Texas Heart Institute, discussed the study during his lecture as part of the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series at UAMS.

“Dr. Willerson’s presentation highlighted the exciting and enormous possibilities being raised by stem cell research,” said UAMS College of Medicine Dean E. Albert Reece, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A. “The Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series provides a venue for the College of Medicine to host some of the nation’s finest researchers in a forum setting where they  share their discoveries, innovations and vision with our faculty, Being able to bring the top medical and research minds to lecture on campus benefits our faculty through exposure to the latest ideas and work.”

Willerson said the study he was involved in with heart patients in Brazil showed improvement of blood flow and cardiac function. He also noted recent Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for a similar but larger study of the technique he is leading now in the United States using stem cells, which have the ability to develop into other cell types.

“The potential is enormous,” Willerson said. “I think stem cells will be a big part of the future of medicine but there is still a lot of work to do, no question about it.”

Willerson said most of the current treatments for congestive heart failure had no major impact on patient survival. Heart transplants have fallen in frequency, he said, because of a lack of available organs and compatibility issues with patients.

In congestive heart failure, the heart is no longer able to pump blood at an adequate rate or volume. About 550,000 new cases of heart failure are diagnosed each year in the United States, according to the American Heart Association.

The 2000 stem cell study included 21 Brazilian patients suffering from chronic heart disease or heart failure and was conducted by researchers from the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in Houston, and the Hospital Procardiaco and the Federal University, both in Rio de Janeiro. Stem cells were collected from the patient’s bone marrow and injected by a special catheter directly into the areas of the heart where problems were identified.

The researchers used cells known as CD34 because they are believed to have a high probability of becoming blood-vessel cells.

The patients showed improved blood flow in the heart as well as improved cardiac function. There were also no harmful effects caused by the treatment, Willerson said.

The exact reason for the patient improvements is uncertain but Willerson believes the stem cells either developed into new blood vessel or heart muscle cells or stimulated the development of those cells.

He noted that stem cells were already deployed by the body to injury sites to make repairs. For major health problems, however, the number of stem cells is too small to be effective, he said.

“This is the system that has evolved or has been given to us so let’s roll with it,” Willerson said. “I believe we were meant to recognize this and build on it.”

In the U.S. study, Willerson said researchers will attempt to replicate the results of the Brazilian study. The study also will compare the effectiveness of stem cells from fetal and adult sources.

Willerson added that he believed the fetal cells were more versatile than the adult cells and would be more effective not just in heart patients but for potential uses that could one day include production of new organs.