The liver is one of the body’s largest glands. It plays a part in a wide range of functions in the body, including protein synthesis, detoxification, digestion and metabolism. When liver disease strikes, it can severely hamper the body’s processes, and can, eventually, result in death. The most common liver diseases include hepatitis, cirrhosis (often a complication of alcoholism), cancer, progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis, Langerhans cell histiocytosis and biliary atresia.
The liver also has a capacity that makes it unique among the bodily organs: it can regenerate lost tissues. Even a small part of a liver can eventually regenerate into an entire liver. This capacity is one of the reasons that liver transplants are fairly common – and it is also the reason that liver disease is responsive to stem cell treatments and therapies.
Research into Stem Cells and Liver Disease
In some countries, doctors have been treating cirrhosis with stem cell implantation since the early 1990s. The stem cells used are embryonic liver cells, a factor that makes the procedure problematic in some countries, such as the United States. The results of this stem cell replacement therapy for liver disease are quite good.
There are, however, a number of stem cell treatments for liver disease that do not involve embryonic stem cells. Instead, they use adult liver stem cells, which have the ability to regenerate damaged liver tissues and restore function to damaged livers. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania are exploring the potential of stem cells that have been isolated from healthy liver cells to eventually provide a cure for many types of liver damage and liver disease.
In yet another area of alternative treatment research, scientists around the globe are studying the results of treating liver disease by injecting a specific type of stem cells into the blood. The research is still in fairly early stages, but shows very positive results so far.
In addition to stem cell treatments that are specific to liver disease, many facilities and clinics offer stem cell treatments that may help boost the body’s immune system and aid restore healthier functioning to a wide range of body cells. These stem cell therapies typically use autologous stem cells – cells taken from the patient’s own skin, bone marrow or fat – which eliminates the concerns about tissue rejection or allergic reactions. These treatments may help the body heal without the side effects of medications and complications of liver disease by boosting the immune system and the body’s ability to repair itself.