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The Pacific Mesothelioma Center (PMC)
announced the issuance of a U.S. patent for their mesenchymal stem research program. The
patent’s inventors Dr. Raymond Wong and Dr. Robert B. Cameron, Scientific Advisor
at PMC, Director of the UCLA Comprehensive Mesothelioma Program, and Chief
of Thoracic Surgery at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center. PMC worked
in conjunction with Dr. Walid Sabbagh Jr. who brings his breadth of expertise
to PMC’s Patent and Grants Advisory Committee.
Mesenchymal stem cells are potent cells found in a variety of tissues,
including bone marrow and placenta, that can grow and mature into a variety
of different cell types. Since they are not easily recognizable as foreign
tissue, the stem cells show enormous potential to being applied in cancer therapy.
According to Dr. Cameron, "After a patient undergoes mesothelioma
surgery, much of the tumor is excised, but some cancer cells inevitably
remain. To destroy the remaining cancer cells, modified mesenchymal stem
cells can be delivered to the exact location where the cancer was surgically
removed and destroy any residual cancer cells. This cutting-edge strategy
has the potential both to increase the chance of long-term survival and
eliminate current treatments with significant side effects, such as radiation
and chemotherapy."
Clare Cameron, Executive Director of PMC, states “We are so proud
of what we have achieved in such a short time and look forward to the
potential that this patent brings to us in treating cancer patients in
the future”.