Bone Marrow Stem Cells Don’t Help Hearts, Reports New Study

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Don’t Help Hearts, Reports New Study

In a study apparently contradicting a trial which I blogged on earlier (11/14/05, “Bone Marrow Stem Cells Help Hearts Again”), researchers at the same conference where the prior results were presented said that in their study they found that found that the heart's ability to pump had improved virtually the same degree in those injected with the bone marrow cells as in patients who had received a placebo. The main difference between the two studies was that the first looked at all varieties of heart attacks, while the second looked only at patients who had suffered heart attacks in the left anterior wall of the heart. The second study’s lead researcher said that further research is needed. The story is reported by Reuters.

These differing results show how much the field is in its infancy, and how little there is to go one even with the advances that have been made recently. Careful research continues to be needed in all areas of stem cell study.