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4A Daily News – Tuesday, January 29, 2013 Vitality health & fitness Scientists warn of stem-cell dangers By Marcia Heroux Pounds Sun Sentinel (MCT) ORLANDO, Fla. — Boca Raton, Fla., parents Gary and Judy Susser say they know the hope and promise of stem-cell therapy. Nine years ago they traveled to Mexico for stem cell injections for their son Adam, who has cerebral palsy. "Maybe it will do some good," Gary Susser said he and his wife thought at the time. They spent $25,000. But the Sussers stopped stem cell injections in 2005, after spending about $25,000 and seeing no improvement. Today, armed with more information, the Sussers are grateful the treatments didn't harm Adam, now 12. While they are advocates of "responsible" stem cell research, they warn other parents against making trips to Costa Rica, Mexico, Russia or other offshore clinics for experimental treatments. With promising breakthroughs making the news, as well as Internet hype, desperate parents and seriously ill patients may look to stem-cell therapy as the modern miracle that could cure them. And one day, stem cells may be routinely used to repair damaged cells, improve the treatment of diseases and even cure paralysis. But there are hidden dangers to today's stem cell treatments, both in the U.S. and offshore, scientists said at the recent World Stem Cell Summit in West Palm Beach, Fla. They pointed to reports of deaths, tumors, lumbar punctures and other potential harm, as well as vulnerable people being conned out of thousands of dollars. MCT photo Judy Susser, left, of Boca Raton, Florida, is pictured Dec. 6, 2012, with her disabled son Adam, 12, who has received stem-cell treatments. Adam was born with brain damage, was blind and has cerebral palsy. He now is able to see enough to track movement, including icons on his iPad. Patients are "buying hope," said University of Miami scientist James Guest, working on The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. But he and other scientists say that responsible research takes years to complete. The Miami Project, in the making for 25 years, is just now reaching the human clinical trial stage, he says. Scientists urge consumers look for regulated clinical trials at universities and research institutions, saying that even those are not without risks. "Clinics are operating out of loopholes, a gray area disguised as the practice of medicine," said George Q. Daley, director of the stem cell transplantation program at HHMI/Children's Hospital in Boston. Industry researcher Dou- Let's get lean in 2013 We are your Resolution Solution! Start your new single, couple, or family membership glas Sipp has kept records of more than 400 companies advertising stem cell products or procedures on websites since 2007. When he rechecked this summer, Sipp said, 80 of the sites were no longer online, though they could have simply changed web addresses. Some of the offshore clinics have been closed by individual countries after patients died, according to Sipp, who leads the research unit for Science Policy and Ethics Studies at the RIKEN Center in Japan. Dr. Allan Wu, a plastic surgeon with California's Morrow Institute, says that consumers can be fooled by clinics using medical buzzwords like "autologous," which refers to stem cells coming from one's own body. Some clinics even claim on their websites that they are FDA-approved, which is untrue. The FDA has only approved cord-blood stem cells products, being used in studies of leukemia, bone marrow disease and other blood disorders — no therapies have been approved. Some doctors take the view that stem cell use in medical treatments is being used widely in other coun- tries and that stricter regulations in U.S. may be slowing advances. The Sussers say their son Adam started to track movement with his eyes after the first stem-cell treatment. Two eye surgeries followed and today he can pick out icons on an iPad. But Gary Susser doesn't know whether the stem-cell treatment or the traditional surgeries resulted in the improvement. In Boca Raton, Fla., an orthopedic specialist, said he's making strides using stem-cells in repairing the knee. "Run from anybody who says they're going to 'cure' your condition," said Dr. Joseph Purita, who has been doing the experimental stem-cell treatments for seven years. Dr. Purita said he has treated "dozens" of athletes with stem-cell treatments in "every sport except hockey." The stem cells are drawn from the patient's own body, either from bone marrow or fat, and injected the same day in the joints. "We haven't cured arthritis. We've found a way to make it better," said Dr. Purita. redbluff.mercy.org www.redbluff.mercy.org We are passionate about weight loss and fitness! 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Deb Huttner's sore ankle, nagging her for a month, wasn't healing. But before she called the clinic, she went online and tried to figure it out herself. On WebMD.com she found a possible diagnosis — tendinitis and bursitis — and decided she needed more help. "When I went to the doctor they said, 'Yep, that's what it is,'" said Huttner, 42, of Crystal, Minn. Now on the mend, she is among the millions of people diagnosing their own conditions online. One in three Americans look to the Internet when trying to fix what ails them or someone else, according to a study released this week by the Pew Internet Project. About half of those who do online triage follow up with a visit to the clinic. In 40 percent of those cases, a medical professional confirmed the diagnosis. "Online health information is available day or night, at no cost, and the Internet has become a de facto second opinion for many people," said Susannah Fox, lead author of the Pew report. 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Do you have a complete or partial denture that is no longer completely comfortable? Have you ever been embarrassed by a denture or a bridge? If you answered "yes" to one or more of these questions, call us today at (530) 527-6777 to schedule an evaluation appointment. We would be pleased to evaluate your oral health and discuss treatment options with you. visit to a medical professional — and can offer scary or misleading answers — it's a key resource for patients that health care providers are starting to embrace. Sometimes it even makes more sense than trekking to the clinic. Allina, for example, recently encouraged nonemergency patients to use its MyChart system for evisits rather than sit in clinic waiting rooms at the height of flu season. "It's all about convenience," said Dr. Jane Herrmann, medical director of MyChart e-visits. Fox, who has studied online health habits since 2000, called the trend a "sea change." "In the beginning, medical professionals were often very resistant," Fox said. Health Partners developed its VirtuWell system for e-visits as a reaction to online demand. "If you kind of stick your head in the sand and don't try to come up with ways of presenting an electronic approach, all you're doing is leaving poor options out there," said Dr. Pat Courneya, medical director of Health Partners Health Plan. According to Pew, 80 percent of the people who seek health information online start at a general search engine, such as Google or Bing. The Mayo Clinic's website for consumer health information, one of the most credible resources online, draws an average of 100 million page views a month. But even there, doctors say, people shouldn't get too anxious about what they might find. They also should follow up with their doctor if they have questions. "When you search 'headache' and (the Internet) comes up with brain tumor, it's not likely going to be the first thought on 'headache' that your doctor will have," said Dr. Roger Harms, editor-in-chief of Mayo's consumer information site. Andy Whisney, 24, said he tries to remember that when prowling the Web — via Google, WebMD.com and Health Partners' VirtuWell. The Edina, Minn., resident, who jokes about slight hypochondriac tendencies, said he has sought info on all sorts of ailments, from pneumonia to gluten intolerance.