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| Utah Families Encouraged by Stem Cell Treatments |
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| Brain Injury | |||
| 일요일, 12 8월 2007 08:00 | |||
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There are no translations available. Source: Daily Herald By Jeremy Duda At the Beike Clinic in Hangzhou, China, a modern-day Silk Road brings in people from across the globe for stem cell treatment that is unavailable in many countries, including the United States. Some who have made the journey have seen groundbreaking results. For others, the improvements have been more subtle. But for three Utah families, it was a trip worth taking. Tim and Maria Schmanski weren't expecting a miracle at the Beike Clinic, and they didn't get one. But the improvements in their daughter Tori are clearly visible. Two years ago, a car wreck and near drowning left the Orem teen with an anoxic brain injury. Since then she has not been able walk, talk or eat by herself. In January, Tori's parents brought her to the Beike Clinic, where she underwent a month of treatment that included injections of more than 50 million stem cells. After half a year -- doctors say the full results take four to six months to show -- the changes are sometimes small, but they are there. Tim said Tori, now 16, can swallow and eat more easily, and is able to eat on her own depending on the food. She is also more aware of her surroundings than before. Several weeks ago, she spotted a jet and followed it across the sky with her eyes. "It sounds like a little thing, but when ... she sees a jet and follows it, it's a good sign," Tim said. Tim said he saw many patients at the Beike Clinic who experienced dramatic improvements in conditions such as multiple sclerosis and ataxia. Tori's condition, however, may be too severe for that. Tim said it was one of the more severe cases that the clinic had seen. "You've got to go with low expectations. There's no guarantees it helps them. Some others it doesn't help as much," he said. "We would've liked to have seen a miracle, but we didn't go over expecting it." Missy and Jed Ashton weren't expecting a miracle either, but the results of their son's stem cell treatment have been significant. Their son Travis was in a car wreck seven years ago that left him with a traumatic brain injury. After a couple years he was able to stop using the wheelchair he was confined to, but he was still unable to talk and did not have the full function of many of his muscles. The Ashtons, of Highland, went to Hangzhou in June and returned about a month ago. Travis, who turned 18 during the trip, seems to have improved by leaps and bounds since then. Though he still can't talk -- he communicates mostly through hand gestures -- he has been able to move his tongue and lips more. His vision has improved, as has the hearing in his right ear. His right arm, which had been drawn up in an unnatural position since the wreck, sits more relaxed. He can even drink water, which he was not able to do before because of its thin consistency. "That may not be a big deal to a lot of people, but ... he's thrilled that he can drink water," Missy said. The family is optimistic about the future. Travis hopes to be able to speak again someday, and, like most teenagers, wants to drive too. He exercises frequently, and will soon begin an intensive physical therapy program that is similar to the one offered at the Beike Clinic, which Missy said is hard to find in the United States. Missy expects Travis to continue to show improvement while the treatment's full effects emerge, and Travis hopes to fully exploit the possibilities during that four- to six-month window. "He gained some improvement, so I feel like it kind of has opened the doors," Missy said. "Since the stem cells will grow for about six months, we're going to hopefully take advantage of this time and hopefully do as much therapy as possible." Before she was in a bus crash in Egypt two years ago, Dena Gennerman was a commercial airline pilot. But since that crash left her with brain damage, she has been much like Tori, unable to walk, talk or eat on her own. Gennerman's parents took her to the Beike Clinic in early May and stayed for about eight weeks. Bob Brehm, her father, said the effects of the treatment are showing. The 39-year-old woman's left side had always been "quite strong," Brehm said, but the right side was weak. Now the right side has gained strength and she can walk, albeit with the help of a physical therapist. She is more alert than before, and Brehm expects to see more improvements as time goes on. "They're minor improvements, but they're big improvements at our end of the scale," said Brehm, a Park City resident. "I'm pleased with it, and I'm anticipating we'll see more improvement." Brehm is already planning to take his daughter back to Hangzhou late this year or early next year. He said doctors told him that patients often see more dramatic improvements after a second round of stem cell treatment. The Ashtons are also thinking about making another trip if Travis continues to show improvements. Tim Schmanski said he is taking a wait-and-see approach to a second stint at the Beike Clinic, but he and Maria are open to the possibility. Tim keeps in touch with Brehm and the Ashtons, and all three families communicate frequently with others across the country who are in similar situations. Each time a family takes a first trip to Hangzhou, they become a bank of information for people looking to go themselves. Just as Tim advised Brehm and the Ashtons on what to expect, they continue to spread the word to others. And the word has been pretty encouraging so far.
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