July 2004 Archives
"Designer baby transplant success.
A boy with a rare blood disorder has been successfully given stem cells from his perfect match 'designer baby' brother.
We won't be able to declare him cured until a year after his transplant. Dr Ajay Vora, consultant hameatologist looking after Charlie."
The story from the BBC of Charlie a boy with Diamond Blackfan Anemia who received stem cells from his 100% HLA match brother.
Watch the video here
Read article here
"Children's to study smallpox vaccine
By Jennifer Heldt Powell
Friday, July 23, 2004
Children's Hospital has won grants worth nearly $10.5 million to develop a safer smallpox vaccine that might be used more broadly.
'It's really unique because it brings together people who are doing real basic research with those who are doing clinicial work,' said Dr. Lynda Schneider, director of Children Hospital's allergy program.
'Since 5 percent of kids and about 1 percent of adults have atopic dermatitis, the risk is great should a decision be made to mass-vaccinate,' said Dr. Raif Geha, chief of Immunology at Children's.
Read story @ Boston Herald by clicking here
Read story @ Medical News Today by clicking here
ATF
Here's what experts suggest to help keep kids cool:
- Increase fluids. As a result of their smaller sizes and lesser ability to sweat, kids are more susceptible to dehydration and heat illness than adults.
- Lighten up the wardrobe. Make sure garments are loose-fitting and light-colored to reflect, not absorb, the sun's energy. A wide-brimmed hat or a sports cap with a brim will help ward off rays. When clothes get sweaty, provide dry ones.
- Avoid the noonday sun. The sun's rays peak from about 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., so schedule indoor activities during this time.
- Keep it small. Provide small meals and frequent snacks. Avoid high-protein foods, because they may increase body (metabolic) heat.
- Lock your car. A third of children's deaths heatstroke-related deaths in a vehicle happened when curious toddlers crawled into the family car and couldn't get out. Make sure you lock your vehicles when you park them at home.
- Know the symptoms -- and what to do.
- Heat cramps
Symptoms:
- heavy sweating
- painful muscle spasms in the legs or abdomen
What to do:
- Get your child to a cooler place and a comfortable position.
- Lightly stretch out the affected muscle.
- Provide fluids: a half-glass of cool (not cold) water every 15 minutes.
- Heat exhaustion
Symptoms:
- heavy sweating
- cool, pale and clammy skin
- weakness
- vomiting
- fainting
What to do:
- Get your child to a cooler place and a comfortable position.
- Remove or loosen tight clothing.
- Apply cool, wet cloths, such as towels or sheets, to the body.
- Provide fluids: a half-glass of cool (not cold) water every 15 minutes.
- Call your child's healthcare provider for advice.
- Heat stroke/sunstroke
Symptoms:
- body temperature of 106°F. or higher
- hot, dry skin
- rapid pulse
- rapid, shallow breathing
- loss of consciousness
What to do:
This is a medical emergency. Call 911 and your child's physician. While you're waiting for help:
- Get your child to a cooler place and immediately begin to cool the body.
- Put her in the bathtub or wrap wet sheets around her.
- Don't give her fluids if she's vomiting.
Other tips:
- Use a waterspray bottle.
- Use cool packs.
Britain loosens rules on screening human embryos
By Beth Gardiner, Associated Press | July 22, 2004
LONDON -- Britain's fertility regulator said yesterday it was loosening rules on screening human embryos to allow couples to conceive a baby in hopes of curing an ailing sibling.
Read the complete article here
ATF
More than 8,000 international scientists and clinicians are in Montréal to share the latest advances in Immunology in the July heat. Researchers from 70 countries arrived in the city on July 18 to attend the weeklong 12th International Congress of Immunology (ICI) and 4th Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies (FOCIS) meeting.
“There will be over 5,000 presentations including diverse topics such as, asthma, stem cell and bone marrow transplantation, vaccines, arthritis and new therapies for HIV,” says Dr. Emil Skamene, Congress President. “The caliber of the presentations is outstanding and the number of delegates is an indicative of the high interest in this important area of science. The link between science and better treatments for many chronic diseases has been achieved by the integration of the ICI and FOCIS programs – a historical first for these two organizations. This will prove to be an extremely exciting and informative conference.”
“This is meeting is the world’s largest and most prestigious gathering of immunologists,” says Dr. Marianna Newkirk, Congress Scientific Program Chair. “It is the first time these two groups of basic and clinical immunologists will meet in Montréal. The city has done an excellent job of accommodating the needs of this conference - a task only a few cities in Canada can accomplish. We are confident the delegates will have a successful and enjoyable time in Montreal.”
The congress includes a university-industry marketplace, where the transfer of new technologies in immunology from labs to biotech, and pharma spin-offs will be emphasized. Here, the newest inventions from all over the world will be offered for commercialization to Quebec and Canadian venture capital and biotechnology groups. Demonstrations and tutorials of new concepts, equipments, products, and educational clinical immunology symposia of the highest scientific content will also be supported by the world’s leading immunology companies.
The ICI-FOCIS 2004 conference is presented by the National Research Council Canada (NRC), in conjunction with the Canadian Society for Immunology and the International Union of Immunological Societies.
'Designer baby' rules are relaxed
The fertility watchdog is to relax the rules on the creation of so-called "designer babies" to help sick siblings.
Suzi Leather, head of the HFEA, said: "We have decided to relax the rules on embryo selection to enable all couples who want to be able to select an embryo who might be a tissue match for an existing seriously ill sibling to be able to do that."
Good NEWS! Good JOB!
Read the complete story by clicking here
Doctors often have to switch a patient from antibiotic to antibiotic until one is found that can get rid of the bacteria. They also have to wait for results from the bacterial cultures to know exactly the type of antibiotic they should use.
There is no fast way to know if an infection is bacterial or viral.
I've seen some Doctors that identify Andy's type of infection by the smell of the affected area.
Recently I heard of a Swiss study where they used a blood test to identify a protein called "procalcitonin" which would be expected with bacterial (not viral) infections.
'Designer babies': Relax the rules?
The rules governing 'designer babies' may soon be relaxed to allow more screening and embryo selection.
Very interesting comments on the BBC website, some of them are:
I think I'd be very happy to know I'd helped save my sibling's life when I was born.
It is totally illogical to not be able to cure a child when one can.
Because mankind has been slowly abandoning natural selection (ie those with bad genetic mutations are rightly NOT allowed to die) the human race is slowly overloading with unfavourable genes. We either engineer our genes directly or select the best genetic stock (no this has nothing to do with racism or eugenics). Otherwise the average homosapien will in 100,000 years need constant medical attention to stay alive.
I can't imagine anyone having a child *only* to help an older sibling - this would surely be an additional reason. Secondly, many, many people have a second child to help their first anyway - they believe that a child is better off not being the only one in the family.
As the parent of a child who died from a genetic disorder I would not have considered giving birth to another child in the hope of saving the first one.
Perhaps the only people that are opposed to this are those who live for their suffering. I believe that if through human engineering we can bring an end to human suffering, we must, we have an obligation to many future lives that have yet to be lived.
Public debate over 'designer babies. By David Firn, Parmaceuticals and Chemicals Correspondent. Published: July 16 2004
The UK government watchdog set up to monitor advances in human genetics has launched a public consultation on the testing of human embryos and babies in the womb.
The discussion is expected to raise some of the most controversial issues in medicine, including the rights of parents to select "designer babies" and the extent to which genetic testing should be used to weed out inherited diseases by aborting affected embryos.
The HGC consultation will seek answers to questions such as: how much choice should parents have over what genes babies can be tested for during pregnancy, the implications of discovering a child is destined to develop an inherited disease, how far parents should be allowed go in the pursuit of "designer babies."
The author calls it one of the most controversial issues in medicine. Very interesting consultation.
ATF
"NATIONAL consultation on designer babies by Ian Sample, science correspondent. Friday July 16, 2004. The Guardian
An unprecedented nationwide consultation on the genetic testing of embryos and babies in the womb is to be launched today by the Human Genetics Commission.
ATF - Copies of the report are available from the Human Genetics Commission UK here.
Among the other issues the HGC is seeking views on is the creation of "designer babies". The prospect of genetically enhancing an embryo to ensure its intelligence, beauty or sporting prowess is still firmly in the realm of science fiction, as scientists have such a poor understanding of the underlying genetics involved. But the technology exists for embryos to be selected on the basis of simple genetic traits, such as sex.
Other traits, such as whether the tissue of a newborn will match that of a sibling, can also be selected - giving rise to controversial "saviour siblings", where an embryo is chosen on the grounds of it being a good tissue donor.
In theory, tissue taken from the newborn could be used to treat a sibling with a medical disorder that cannot be treated any other way. While the technique is legal in the US, it is banned in Britain as law prevents the creation of life to save a life.
ATF - I'm convinced that obtaining stem cells from the umbilical cord of a full match brother or sister increases the chances for success in a bone marrow transplant. One of the main risks of bone marrow transplantation is graft vs. host disease. This is when the new cells attack its host because they consider it an external invader. If cells are similar then there's a lower chance for rejection.
Ethical dilemmas
Should designer babies be allowed?
Should pregnant women be able to have the same genetic tests as women undergoing IVF and other fertility treatments?
Should there be a limit to the disorders a baby can be screened for?
Should babies be genetically profiled at birth?
Is counselling sufficient for parents seeking genetic tests?
What are the implications of falling sperm counts?
Can the NHS take the strain?
Find the complete article here.
ATF - Very interesting consultation.
ATF
Thanks to the numerous injections that humanity has received, Andy is still alive…
It’s incredible how medicine advances.
Gracias a la cantidad de piquetes que le han dado a la humanidad, Andy sigue vivo...
Es increible ver como avanza la medicina.
I participated today as a volunteer on the radiothon, from 9:00am to 12:00pm that took place at the patient entertainment center @ Children's Hospital Boston.
Some of the radio hosts were there and its fun to put a face to the voice I sometimes hear on the radio. Some of them looked much younger than I expected and only one looked older than I expected.
I received around 30 calls of an average of 15 dlls once-a-month donations for a year. So that’s $5,400 total. Not bad!
I received 1 crank phone call of a lady saying that she knows about an anesthesiologist that punctured 5 children’s lungs in one day. I told her she should donate some money so that Children's Hospital Boston could prevent that (knowing it’s false..). Then I told her that my son Andy has been in the OR 18 times and he's received wonderful care. She hung up.
You can find the Mix 98.5 radiothon website here
On Monday, April 19, 150 runners, including 40 qualified runners, participated in the 108th Boston Marathon as Kids at Heart Team members. Andy was teamed with runners Elyse Topp-Poirier and Brian Serroul.
Elyse and Brian each have their website:
Elyse = www.elyse4andy.com
Brian = www.brian4andy.com
We helped raise a record-breaking $940,000.
We achieved the "Superstar" top fundraiser level.
"A DESPERATE husband has offered $10,000 to the person who saves his dying wife's life with a bone marrow transplant. Mother-of-three Josie Panetta, who turns 37 next Sunday, has acute myeloid leukemia.
Doctors have told her she will be dead in two months unless a donor is found – but none of the 160,000 people on the Australian Bone Marrow Registry is a match. Family members – grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins – have been tested with no match."
WOW! There are around 19.1 million people in Australia (source The Economist) and they have 160,000 people registered as bone marrow transplant donors. Mexico has around 98.9 million people (same source) and there are 3,800 people registered as bone marrow transplant donors.
I thought about this option (offering money if a match was found) when I was talking to the mexican registry. The problem is that the mexican registry lacks the ability and infrastructure to obtain samples from a lot of people. They make it very, very difficult. Dr. Gorodesky who manages the registry spent more time fighting with me than offering help. It's not that people in Mexico don't want to register, it's that the registry manager is not doing the job well.
Why dont they publish the womans HLA typing?
Complete article of the husband offering money can be found here.
