Scope, Symptoms & Current Treatment
Every two seconds, someone in the world experiences a stroke.
Every ten seconds a stroke claims a life.
Worldwide 6.2 million deaths each year are due to stroke.
(Source: World Stroke Organization)
In 2015, stroke deaths accounted for 11.8% of total deaths globally, making stroke the second leading global cause of death worldwide behind heart disease (Source: American Heart Association). Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in the United States and is a major cause of serious disability for adults. About 795,000 people in the United States have a stroke each year (Source: CDC.gov).
The American Heart Association uses the acronym F.A.S.T. to recognize and respond to the signs of a stroke:
- Face Drooping
- Arm Weakness
- Speech Difficulty
- Time to call 9-1-1
Today, there are seven million stroke survivors in the United States alone. Unfortunately, most survivors were unable to receive “clot busting” therapy; the single currently approved treatment that exists for stroke victims, which is only useful if provided within 4-6 hours of the onset of symptoms.
CMMRF Discovery
The therapeutic substances that adipose stem cells secrete have demonstrated the ability to rescue brain at risk both in young and adult laboratory rodents after interruption of blood flow to the brain. These findings can lead the way to entirely new treatments for stroke and cerebral palsy (stroke in babies) that can be applied up to 36 hours after the onset of stroke symptoms.
Today
Clot Busting Therapy Within 4-6 hrs
Tomorrow
Stem Cell Therapeutic Agents Up to 36 hrs
2017: Our goal is to put these therapeutic agents both into emergency rooms and ambulances for immediate administration when needed.
2019: The Veterans Administration Research Consortium has asked ICVBM to develop new approaches to improving outcomes after a stroke. Key to recovery after a stroke is “rescuing” those brain cells that are injured but not dead. We are working with colleagues in Neurosurgery on a rat stroke model in which we can inject regulatory T cells that we are creating in our lab directly into the injured part of the brain.
