Treatment with adult stem cells, which may have the potential to help millions of people battling severe coronary artery disease, is "well tolerated" by patients, an initial study found.
There were no deaths or heart attacks, after a year, among 18 patients who had bone marrow injected into their hearts to heal tissue, researchers said Monday at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics conference in Washington.
Researchers are eager to learn if stem cells found in bone marrow can transform treatment for cardiac patients by reversing damage after a heart attack. The findings supported the initiation of a second trial, involving 150 patients, which is being sponsored by Baxter International Inc., based in Deerfield, Ill. Baxter is the world's biggest maker of blood-disease treatments.
"We have reached a milestone in exploring further a much- needed therapy for this patient population," said the leader of the first study, Douglas Losordo, in statement. Losardo is the chief of cardiovascular research at Caritas St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Boston.
While 15 of the patients said they had less chest pain and more ability to exercise after the injections, the initial study wasn't sufficient to prove that the treatment works, the researchers said.
The research expands on animal studies that have shown that injecting stem cells into the heart may regenerate or repair damaged tissue in the cardiac muscle.
Coronary artery disease affects 13 million Americans and is the leading cause of death in the United States, according to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute. The buildup of fatty deposits on the walls of the arteries that supply blood to the heart causes the vessels to harden and become narrower and may lead to a heart attack.