In 2020, doctors reportedly injected a boy named Finley with umbilical cord blood stem cells because he had congenital heart disease and had also failed an operation to repair two of his heart’s arteries.
Today after 2 years the ending is perfect. The researchers have also improved the “stem cell cast” technique. With their help, children who have a hole in the heart or problems with blood vessels and valves can be treated. To put it simply, children who have heart disease from birth will not need many open-heart operations. They can be made healthy by using the ‘stem cell cast’ technique.
Hundreds of thousands of babies are born with heart problems around the world. The techniques currently used for its treatment are not effective for a long time. For example, if we talk about the valve of the heart, then it is necessary to change the valve when the child grows up.
Researchers hope the ‘stem cell cast’ will be better for children’s hearts. Its clinical trials are expected to begin in the next few years.
Finley’s parents were reportedly already prepared for the trial, as Finley’s chances of survival were not very high. She had also undergone surgery, which failed. After this, the doctors tried a new treatment. She developed stem cells from the placenta. They were injected into the boy’s heart, so that the boy’s damaged arteries would heal. The trial is successful and Finley recovers.
what’s up placenta
It is a temporary organ that develops only during pregnancy. It nourishes the growing fetus in the womb. This helps keep the child healthy. It is fixed to the wall of the uterus and from this the umbilical cord of the child comes out.