Stem cell therapy offers hope for pets dogged by pain
Updated 12h 2m ago
Enlarge By Kevin Moloney for USA TODAY
Francine Hammer watches her German shepherd Maggie, who suffers from
debilitating arthritis. "Maggie was a mess," says her veterinarian,
Mary Anne Smith.
WORKS FOR CATS, TOO
Veterinarian Bob Harman says any vet credentialed in the stem cell
process for small animals can apply it to cats.
But most pet owners aren't as conscious of cat arthritis as dog
arthritis because cats generally don't go on walks, tend to be
sedentary in old age and indicate pain in less obvious ways than dogs.
Increasing awareness may lead to more cats being treated.
Hammer gave Maggie all kinds of medicines and supplements for joint
health. "We tried everything," she said.
By Sharon L. Peters, Special for USA TODAY
LITTLETON, Colo. — Maggie the German shepherd had become increasingly
disabled and pain-racked with each passing year, despite the best
efforts of owner Francine Hammer.
A crooked front wrist, evident when she was a puppy, was just the
beginning. Eventually, arthritis ravaged every joint. "We tried
everything" to relieve the pain and maintain her mobility, Hammer
says. But by last fall, at age 11, Maggie was "creaky, creaky, didn't
want to get up, couldn't go for walks." She kept her head low because
of pain and wasn't very interested in food.
"Maggie was a mess," says Mary Anne Smith, the dog's veterinarian
since puppyhood. "She had issues in all four legs and quite possibly
in her back." She compares the dog to a car "with four low tires and,
on some days, three lows and a flat."
DOGGY PADDLE: More aging, aching pooches hit the pool
Around Thanksgiving, on Smith's recommendation, Hammer took Maggie to
Colorado Springs veterinarian James Gaynor, who specializes in pain
management and is among about 250 veterinarians trained in a cutting-
edge therapy using stem cells extracted from a dog's own fat. The
process, patented and made commercially available by California-based
Vet-Stem, has generated excitement in veterinary circles.
Practitioners gave a session last month at the North American
Veterinary Conference in Orlando; they'll speak at the Western
Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas next week and give a symposium at
the American Veterinary Medical Association'
Orleans.
'She's a different dog'
Nearly 300 dogs have had the procedure, says Vet-Stem founder and
veterinarian Bob Harman, and 85% of those the company has been able
to follow up with experienced "slight to very substantial"
improvement.
Within days of Maggie's procedure, she felt better; today, "she's a
different dog," Hammer says. "She's able to walk, is pretty fast on
her feet, and she wags her tail, something she hasn't been able to do
for years."
The procedure, which runs $2,000 to $2,500, involves surgically
removing about 2 tablespoons of fat from the dog and shipping it
overnight to Vet-Stem, which isolates stem cells and returns them in
syringes to the vet, who injects joints.
"This is probably the most exciting development I've seen in 25
years," says Beaverton, Ore., veterinarian Tim McCarthy, who has
treated about 20 dogs, most in association with arthroscopic
surgery; "only one didn't get any better."
Stem cells from fat and bone marrow have been investigated for both
human and animal applications (several veterinary schools are engaged
in studies) in recent years. It's known that stem cells are
regenerative, take up residence around injured tissue and have anti-
inflammatory properties, but much of how they work and why is
unknown, Vet-Stem molecular biologist and veterinarian Linda Black
says.
The approach doesn't require Food and Drug Administration approval
because "minimally manipulated" cells are extracted and re-injected
into the same animal, she says. And because animals receive their own
cells, there's no rejection.
Apart from the normal risk attached to the anesthesia, Harman says,
there seems to be no downside except for rare brief inflammation at
the extraction site.
Half the veterinarians who have been credentialed (through attending
a half-day session or completing a four-hour online course) to do the
process on small animals practice in California; 25 states have no
one trained in the process, according to a list posted on the Vet-
Stem website, which names 200 of the 250.
Vet-Stem first began using the process in 2004 on horses with tendon,
ligament and joint problems (455 large-animal vets are certified),
and most improved. Critics say most of them would have healed on
their own with time, a position many of the animals' trainers
dispute. In canine applications, little criticism has emerged.
"Everything I've heard so far has been very positive," says Brenda
Salinardi, a veterinarian at Oregon State University Veterinary
Teaching Hospital. She has used the procedure on a dog with severe
arthritis, which "is doing very well."
Gaynor has used stem cell therapy on 27 dogs "and all improved — some
more than others," but he acknowledges many questions remain. It's
unclear how long the positive effects will last, whether follow-up
injections will improve results or which animals are unlikely to
benefit.
A step for desperate owners
The unanswered questions are irrelevant to Gaynor's clients eager for
help for their pets. Judy McCollam's Shetland sheepdog Cassie was so
severely disabled by arthritis in her hips that "when we'd take her
for walks, we'd wind up carrying her," she says. And "watching her
get up from a nap was like watching a really old dog get up." Cassie
was on strong painkillers, and she was not yet 2 years old. McCollam,
of Fountain, Colo., opted for the stem cell procedure. Within days,
Cassie was better, McCollam says, and two months later, "she seems
not to be in any pain."
Owners who are desperate for an ailing dog to feel better can
convince themselves interventions are helping when, in fact, by
impartial measures, that's untrue. But veterinarians who have used
the procedure say they've generally been able to chart measurable
improvement.
Smith, who treated Maggie for more than a decade, says the dog
is "hard to evaluate because she had multiple joint issues," but the
veterinarian detected "marked improvement" soon after the
procedure. "She is much more confident walking, her gait is much more
fluid, and she has greater mobility getting up and down."
Vet-Stem is investigating a handful of additional dog and cat
ailments and diseases that might benefit from stem cell therapy.
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StemCells subscribers may also be interested in these sites:
Children's Neurobiological Solutions
http://www.CNSfoundation.org/
Cord Blood Registry
http://www.CordBlood.com/at.cgi?a=150123
The CNS Healing Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CNS_Healing
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