Warning on untested stem cell therapies

A group of British scientists, medical researchers and funding organisations has written an open letter to the Times newspaper, saying that patients should be warned that some stem cell therapies being offered by clinics are not 'wonder cures'. Many of the therapies available - at home and abroad, and often at a high price - are as yet untested, and therefore unreliable, say the experts.

In the letter, the experts warn that many of the companies offering stem cell treatments have little medical evidence to support their claims. While stem cell research and therapies do potentially hold great promise, the signatories say, unorthodox treatments may do more harm than good to patients - for example by carrying a risk of infection, immune system rejection or cancer. The letter also warns that 'mainstream' stem cell research could be set back by the premature use of stem cells in therapies before safety and effectiveness checks have been carried out: 'We worry that those cutting corners risk discrediting the field as well as betraying patients', it says.

So far, only very few treatments using adult or cord blood stem cells have been licensed in the UK - these tend to be for treatments for leukaemia and related conditions, or for skin and eye conditions. But some private centres, as well as clinics in other countries, offer 'unorthodox' stem cell treatments for multiple sclerosis, or cosmetic reasons. 'There is no published evidence to support claims that stem cells can safely repair tissue damage caused by multiple sclerosis', says the letter. One example is a clinic that operates in the Netherlands, backed by Swedish company Advanced Cell Therapeutics. It charges up to £13,500 for treatment with cord blood stem cells - but is under investigation by the authorities, and the procedure it offers was banned earlier this year in Ireland. There are only anecdotal reports of the treatment being successful.

The letter was signed by Professor Colin Blakemore, head of the Medical Research Council, Lord Patel, of the Steering Committee for the UK Stem Cell Bank and Simon Gillespie, head of The Multiple Sclerosis Society. Others represented include the heads of the Parkinson's Disease Society, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the Alzheimer's Society. 'We would urge anyone considering visiting clinics overseas to obtain treatments not available in the UK to seek advice from their consultants or their GPs and to weigh the risks carefully', they say.

The BBC has reported that a five year-old girl from Sussex is being taken to China for a course of cord blood stem cell injections, after her parents raised £20,000 for the trip. The treatment, which her parents hope will cure her of Batten's Disease, a rare genetic disorder affecting speech and movement, is not legal in the UK. Annette Dacosta, the girl's mother, told the BBC: 'Maybe I'm offering her up as a guinea pig to be the first child to see what happens with stem cells. If it works, fantastic. If it doesn't work then my child's had four injections and she's come out of it unscathed'.