The stem cells are the green ones.

Stem cells are pretty freaking amazing, you guys.  The body is a miraculous thing that can recover from just about anything, and it is believed that stem cells hold the key to that recovery.  Stem cells can help with HIV, balding, and can save just about any species on the planet, so it’s not surprising that stem cells can be used to do other, more normal things.  A 10-year-old girl in Sweden had veins in her legs replaced with veins grown by stem cells.

Harvesting veins for replacement is a very difficulty, painful process in which veins have to be harvested and then implanted in the affected area.  To replace the major vein in the girl’s legs, doctors from the University of Gothenburg and Shalgrenska University Hospital took veins from a cadaver donor, stripped them via a process known as decellularization, and then bathed the veins in the girl’s own stem cells.  That uses the vein skeleton to build new veins that match the girl’s own blood system.

Said the doctors who performed the procedure, “The new stem-cell derived graft resulted not only in good blood flow rates, but also in strikingly improved quality of life for the patient.”

The girl had a blockage in the veins connecting her liver and intestines; such a blockage can cause pain, internal bleeding, and even death in extreme cases.  All artificial grafts had failed.  Here’s hoping the artificial veins will work like a charm.

Tags: medicine, stem cells, stem cell research, girl gets new leg veins via stem cells, medical miracles, modern medicine, human body, weird medical news, decellularization, University of Gothenburg, Shalgrenska University Hospital, girl gets new veins grown with stem cells, veins replaced by stem cells

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