Good News From Israel

On January 1, 2020, Interesting Engineering posted the following:

Israeli firm Alpha Tau Medical has developed a new cancer treatment that attacks tumors while sparing healthy tissue. The treatment is called Alpha DaRT (Diffusing Alpha-emitters Radiation Treatment), according to The Jerusalem Post.

Alpha DaRT uses, for the first time, alpha radiation for solid tumor treatment. But it does so in a way that the body can tolerate it.

Most cancer treatments out there are simply not tolerable. Our bodies were not made to be exposed to them.

Alpha particles have a high capacity to destroy cancer cells without causing side effects on healthy cells. However, they have extremely short path length in tissue, meaning that up to now they could not get across the entire volume of a tumor.

ALPHA DaRT technology uses the radioactive decay of an isotope called radium-224 to power the spread of alpha particles across entire tumors. This makes ALPHA DaRT technology a powerful cancer-killing agent with minimum side effects.

This limits collateral damage during cancer treatment. Studies done on the treatment are very promising showing a very high level of safety for patients.

The article concludes:

In one recent study, the treatment showed tumor shrinkage in 100% of cases and delivered total tumor destruction in over 78% of cases.

…And other cancer centers are also exploring Alpha DaRT. Trials are being undertaken in Israel, Canada, Japan, Russia, Italy and in the United States.

This is fantastic news for anyone or any family that has been touched by cancer.

Good News From The Scientific Community

Yesterday CBN News reported that the Nobel Prize for medicine has been awarded to John Gurdon from the United Kingdom and Shinya Yamanaka from Japan. The two scientists were involved in cell research.

The article reports:

Scientists John Gurdon from the United Kingdom and Shinya Yamanaka from Japan discovered it’s possible to take a cell out of an adult patient, strip-down the cell to what it was like when it was a brand new, healthy cell, then put that healthy cell into the patient in the part of the body that’s sick: such as  the brain, the spine, or heart.

The healthy cell then regenerates and takes over the sick area, making the patient well again.

The technique has proved successful with heart patients in a study at the University of Louisville.

The cells that the scientists used were adult stem cells, not embryonic stems cells.

The article further reports:

“It’s not hype, it is really hope. I think that stem cells will likely become a routine part of the treatment of cardiovascular disease in the next  few years,” Dr. Bolli said.

The discovery is good news for those who believe in the sanctity of life. Until now, much of the scientific community believed this type of cell regeneration needs to start with living, human embyos, a process that destroys the embryo.

This research will allow stem cell research to continue without creating life in order to destroy it. Adult stem cells have generally proven to be more successful in helping cure certain diseases than embryonic stem cells. This is a win for patients and for those who believe that life should not be created for the purpose of being destroyed.

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Adult Stem Cells And Heart Disease

On Wednesday, CBN News posted a story about the use of adult stem cells to treat heart disease. Dr. Roberto Bolli at the University of Louisville has completed an adult stem cell treatment on 16 heart failure patients — and the study was largely successful.

The article reports:

“It’s not hype, it is really hope,” he said. “I think that stem cells will likely become a routine part of the treatment of cardiovascular disease in the next few years.”

Bolli took cells from a healthy part of the patient and infused them into the patient’s heart, causing the regeneration of previously dead heart tissue.

Please note–these are adult stem cells from the patient’s own body, there were no embryonic stem cells involved. Since the cells were taken from the patient, there was no danger of rejection.

The article points out:

Other researchers have used adult stem cells to restore vision to patients whose eyes were damaged by chemicals.They have also been used to treat leukemia, lymphoma and other blood diseases, heal broken bones, and create skin grafts.

The article reports:

Because of the promise of Bolli’s work, the National Institutes of Health has awarded a $3.4 million grant for more research at the University of Louisville over the next seven years.

Hopefully Dr. Bolli’s research will mean longer, healthier lives for many people.

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