to see any significant benefits.
Unscrupulous Clinics
We begin this section with the tale of Mr. Patel.
CASE STUDY: MR. PATEL
Mr. Patel, a 57-year-old businessman in the hospitality industry, started developing knee pain. Initially he used some natural remedies to quell the pain and in general ignored it. Mr. Patel had taken good care of his body with no past injuries. Soon, though, the pain started to interfere with golf. Enjoying a chilled beer after a round of golf with his dear friends on Sundays was his only respite from a stressful career, and so he looked for a new solution. Mr. Patel saw an ad in a local newspaper about stem cell treatments for knee pain. He had already heard of stem cells and their potential, and so he made an appointment for an evaluation. He was seen by a physician and was told his knees were very bad and he would soon need replacement surgery. This physician did not perform any imaging, but instead played upon Mr. Patel’s fears to scare him into signing up for stem cell therapy without confirming the diagnosis. Mr. Patel was told that one injection of stem cells should make his knees healthy for the rest of his life. He was told he would be getting fresh baby cells delivered through an IV. Mr. Patel was also told there would be no risks. He asked about using his own cells and was told they were too old to provide any benefit. Seeing no other viable option to avoid surgery, Mr. Patel signed up.
He arrived at the clinic one morning, and an IV was placed in his arm. Then the so-called stem cells were injected through an IV. Mr. Patel got no written notification about the exact nature of the cells, or their count, or their viability. Three months after the procedure, Mr. Patel’s knee pain worsened. During a follow-up visit, he was told the treatment did not work for him because his body was too far gone.
Despondent, Mr. Patel started seeking opinions from other doctors. This time he got an ultrasound, X-rays, and MRI imaging. He had a moderate degree of degeneration but still plenty of joint space. Mr. Patel was nowhere near needing joint replacement surgery. He was offered a cortisone or hyaluronic acid injection, which he refused. He sought the opinion of a physician specializing in regenerative medicine. After, he received an injection of PRP (platelet-rich plasma). This reduced the inflammation in his knee joint. He was back playing golf. PRP, derived from his own blood, with his own cells, avoided any side effects and prevented further damage to his own tissues.
While there were several red flags in Mr. Patel’s case, it is not uncommon for people to fall prey to clinics promoting stem cell methodologies with no scientific basis. Let’s take a look at another patient.
CASE STUDY: THE OPHTHALMOLOGIST
Dr. Nina, a practicing ophthalmologist specializing in eye surgery, had damage to one of her knees from years of standing. She was in her early 60s. She had read and researched a little bit about stem cell treatments. Obviously, she was not ready to go under the knife and get a total knee replacement, although this was recommended. She also had a little bit more understanding than the normal layperson about foreign stem cells and associated risks. She also knew that intravenously delivered cells have no role to play. They would be filtered by her lungs and unable to reach her knee.
The eye doctor opted for her own fat-derived stem cells. Approximately 40 mL of fat was aspirated and squished around between two syringes and injected into her knee. That night she was in severe pain. By the next morning, her knee had swelled up. She was told she had an inflammatory reaction. One year after, this busy professional was still reeling with knee pain. She had very few good but mostly bad days. What really went wrong here?
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