Stem Cells, The Ultimate Anti-Aging Therapy
By Cory Quirino, Philippine Daily, November 22, 2006
Degeneration and aging will be unraveled along with the other mysteries of life thanks to modern medicine. In Manila, a medical breakthrough has arrived with one of the latest developments in stem cell therapy. 
Your body is in a constant state of renewal. The changes are occurring in your system even as you read this article. Inside the human body, cells renew, regenerate, and are born every single second.
Scientists have believed for quite some time now that when you die, the cells are not the same as when you were born.
So, why do we age if the natural process of the body is to remake itself? A team of stem cell biologists in Sweden are attempting to answer this question
It is suspected that stem cells age and their supply is exhausted. What happens if the supply is replenished? Enter stem cell therapy.
Our bodies are created from stem cells which are the fundamental building blocks of life. They develop into the different tissues of our body: bone, blood, nerve, muscle, organ, etc, and are formed at conception.
Injured tissue can be repaired by tapping the body’s stem cell reserves. However, the reserve becomes depleted since it is finite. Thus, we succumb to disease and aging as the regenerative power of the body decreases.
Bone marrow, peripheral blood, and fat are all sources of stem cells. The Russians were the first to collect stem cells from non-bone marrow sources. But the process raised ethical issues since the source was aborted fetuses.
Today, since it takes about five days to go through the process of harvesting bone marrow stem cells, a new approach has been tapped that is easier, just as effective, and non-controversial—Autologous Stem Cell Transplant.
This process was introduced in Manila by Dr. Florencio, who is a respected member of the medical community and a reputable senior plastic surgeon, along with an expert in regenerative medicine, Dr. Bill.
100cc’s of peripheral blood and fat are extracted from the body through mini-liposuction. The newly harvested inactive adult stem cells are incubated in stimulating growth factors derived from colostrums, which are the first liquid secretion of milk-producing organic cows in New Zealand.
Once 50 million stem cells are stimulated; the patient is infused with the isolated cells intravenously. Under local anesthesia, the procedure takes place in the operating room of a local hospital and lasts four hours. Three hours to incubate, stimulate, and infuse them back into the patient, with the other hour being occupied by the harvesting process.
The stem cells come from the individual and are returned to him/her, so there are no moral or religious issues involved.
Individuals with Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, cancer, arthritis, diabetes, and spinal cord injuries all stand to gain with this therapy.
In the case of an 80-year-old who has fewer tremors from Parkinson’s and now goes ballroom dancing, the results have been not only encouraging but astonishing. But it does not end with just one. Health enthusiasts, politicians, and high-profile businessmen that have received the treatment can now think faster and more clearly, their libidos have increased, and they have all gained a more youthful appearance.
A new medical breakthrough is being driven by the dynamic duo of Bill and Florencio. More extensive clinical studies are being planned for the near future.
Foreign patients are now flying to Manila to receive the benefits of the treatment.
“I chose to make Manila my headquarters because of its strategic location, ideal for medical tourism,” said Dr. Bill who was in Manila before for a World Health Organization project. “Filipino doctors are (also) among the finest in the world.” Specific study of stem cell therapy to ease pain and hasten wound-healing was allowed by working with the French Foreign Legion in Angola and Congo. Faster recovery and anti-aging results were observed.
 But just how far back does the clock turn for stem cell patients? Right now, the number is five to ten years. But by improving the quality of their lives by making healthy decisions, the average human life expectancy can reach 120 without question.
Many individuals aspire to age gracefully, while others regardless of any health challenge, wish to improve the quality of their lives. But others are intrigued with the challenge of defying time itself.
So in the future, with advances in stem cell therapy, when someone asks the question, “how old are you?”
Your answer just may be, “I am as young as I want to be.”
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