Finley, a baby born with a heart condition, became the first person in history to receive stem cells as a patch for his heart during surgery. Finley's doctors are working to improve stem cell treatment and use it to help repair the hearts of other children in the future.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.K. National Health Service (NHS), congenital heart defects are the most common type of birth defect, occurring in about 1% of babies born in the United States and the United Kingdom. Finley was born with a condition called "transposition of the great arteries," in which the two major arteries responsible for carrying blood out of the heart are positioned incorrectly. This information was provided in a statement by the University of Bristol in England.
Creating "Stem Cell Patches"
Finley had open-heart surgery to correct the positions of his arteries just four days after he was born. However, complications arose after the lengthy procedure, and Finley's heart function began to decline. He received ongoing treatment in an intensive care unit for several weeks. During this time, Dr. Massimo Caputo, a professor of congenital heart surgery at Bristol Medical School, presented Finley's parents with an alternative option: injecting stem cells directly into Finley's heart.
Hudd explained that the doctors were unsure of the potential outcome of the stem cell treatment, but they were willing to try it as they had exhausted all other options and wanted to give Finley every chance to survive. Hudd stated, "Dr. Caputo warned us that he couldn't predict the outcome, but we had nothing to lose and wanted to give Finley every possible chance to live."
At the University of Bristol, Dr. Massimo Caputo had been working on creating "stem cell patches" made of donated stem cells that could be sewn into the heart during surgery. These patches, known as "stem cell plasters," are intended to be a long-lasting alternative to synthetic patches or replacement heart valves that may need to be replaced over time as a child grows. The researchers hope that the use of these plasters will reduce or eliminate the need for children to undergo multiple open-heart surgeries.
Dr. Massimo Caputo holding baby Finley on the day he left hospital.
Stem Cells Injection for Heart Disease
Dr. Caputo explained that the goal of stem cell patches is to create living tissue, such as a valve, blood vessel, or patch, that will grow with the child and not deteriorate over time. He said, "I think that would massively change their quality of life." The patches are safe in animal testing, and with funding from the British Heart Foundation, Caputo plans to begin clinical trials in humans within the next two years, according to a statement from the University of Bristol.
The baby's case was not part of a clinical trial and received stem cells "under compassionate grounds," meaning that he received them due to the severity of his condition and the lack of other treatment options. He did not receive the stem cell patch that Dr. Caputo is currently developing, but rather received an injection of stem cells during his second open-heart surgery.
Finley's mother, Melissa Hudd, reported that within two weeks of receiving the stem cell treatment they saw a significant improvement in Finley's condition. She said, "He came home for the first time when he was just six months old on a machine that still helps him breathe at night." Hudd added that, although they are unsure of what the future holds, they are grateful for the stem cell treatment and the opportunity it has given Finley to have a chance at a normal life.
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