Stem Cells Treat Urinary Incontinence
Reported July 16, 2007
TORONTO (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) — Approximately 13 million Americans are living with urinary incontinence — a condition that causes the bladder to leak urine. Its nearly twice as common in women, and many dont seek help. Surgical slings, pills and exercises are a few common treatments, but researchers say stem cell therapy could offer new hope to people looking to live a life free of embarrassment.
Sharon Tomlinson has been living with an embarrassing problem for six years. Someone would tell a joke, and I would wet myself, she says. If Id cough, lots of times, I would find myself wet, and it became awkward.
Urinary incontinence became particularly inconvenient for Tomlinson when it began to interfere with some of her favorite hobbies, like golf. I had been embarrassed enough times that I really had to do something about it, she says. Thats why Tomlinson decided to join a clinical trial designed to test the efficacy of a new form of stem cell therapy.
The role of stem cells and urology in general is very exciting, says Lesley Carr, M.D., a urologist at the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and the University of Toronto in Canada.
To perform stem cell therapy, doctors take a small biopsy of muscle cells from the patients leg and send it to a lab where researchers isolate and grow the stem cells. A few weeks later, these stem cells are injected into muscles around the urethra to strengthen it and prevent leakage.
The procedure itself takes just five minutes, and 60 percent of patients surveyed in the study reported improvement after one year, with no side effects. The recovery time is also short. Patients can go home and be active right away, as opposed to other surgeries where they need to restrict their activity while things heal, says Dr. Carr.
Tomlinson says her stem cell therapy was a great success. I very seldom have any leakage at all, she says. Its made me freer. My life is unrestricted now.
If you would like more information, please contact:
Natalie Chung Sayers
Public Relations
Sunny Brook Health Sciences Centre:
Toronto Sunnybrook Regional Cancer Centre
natalie.chung-sayers@sunnybrook.ca