Human Embryonic Stem Cell Therapy Helps Treat Army Officer With Paralysis

A senior Indian army officer, Gaurav Bhatia, suffered severe spinal injury after his car went off a cliff. The officer's injury was further aggravated by rescue workers crudely hauling him up the cliff-side with ropes which left the right part of his body paralyzed. However, a new stem cell therapy, called the Human Embryonic Stem Cell (HESC), has helped cure Bhatia. The HESC therapy involves injecting isolated human embryonic stem cells into the patients to help the body heal on its own in a natural way. After the accident, Bhatia remained in a city-based hospital for over two years with no positive results emerging out of the treatment. His family continued searching for a medical treatment that could show some progress in the patient's health. They finally got to know about the HESC therapy. They learned that Dr. Geeta Shroff, an expert in this new field of treatment, had helped a number of patients recover from severe spinal injuries.

The stem cells once injected into the body, engraft in the appropriate tissue and supplement replacement or repair of the missing function of the body. This therapy has no known side-effects and, unlike other organ transplants, it does not require any immuno-suppressants.

The doctors reported that Bhatia underwent the therapy for a couple of months and showed positive response to the treatment. He has now completely recovered from the partial paralysis and is able to walk properly now. Bhatia said, "Of course, initially we were apprehensive but after we read about the ground-breaking technology, we became convinced about its benefits. Shroff also agreed to perform the therapy and we went ahead with the procedure." Bhatia said in statement after the successful treatment.

Dr. Shroff, who is currently associated with Nutech Mediworld based in Green Park in south Delhi, said, "With significant development in the field of stem cells, diseases like cerebral palsy, Parkinson's disease, type II diabetes and spinal injury, which are currently labelled as 'incurable' or 'terminal' can be treated safely and effectively."

Describing the technology as 'made in India', Dr. Shroff added that the technology is also being used to cure a number of patients from abroad, who came to India seeking medical treatment.

Source-IANS