Am I too old for stem cells for my arthritis?

Recently there was a segment on 60 Minutes entitled “21st Century Snake Oil” that profiled the use of stem cells in humans for conditions that were over represented, over promised and understudied.  The segment showed how people suffering from ALS were taken advantage of because they were so desperate for a cure.  Unfortunately, it is companies and clinics like these that inhibit the progress of stem cell medicine.

Vet-Stem Lab

As one of the first veterinary stem cell companies in the world, Vet-Stem sets the standard for other veterinary stem cell companies. The reason why Vet-Stem has a mandatory training class for veterinarians who want to use stem cells for dogs with arthritis is to teach them the science behind regenerative medicine.  This stem cell course educates veterinarians on how stem cells can be used to help treat dogs, cats and horses. Upon completion of the course, veterinarians can use the Vet-Stem laboratory for isolating stem cells from dogs with conditions such as arthritis and tendon and ligament injury.

Vet-Stem has set the bar by conducting multi-center clinical trials.  Two of Vet-Stem’s clinical trials have been published in peer review scientific journals.  Vet-Stem is very proud to have conducted the first blinded placebo controlled study where dogs with arthritis in their hip joint were treated with their own stem cells.

I think the future holds great promise for the use of stem cells in dogs, not only for arthritis but also for other  conditions.  Before those conditions will be approved for commercial use, studies will need to be conducted and data collected and analyzed.

If you think your dog or cat can benefit from the use of stem cells, consider this checklist of points to consider to take to your veterinarian.

In a future blog I will share some of the procedures Vet-Stem has to assure the safe handling of your pets sample.