Umbilical Cord Tissue Stem Cells Restore Vision of Young Vladomir

The risks to the mother and child during childbirth have drastically reduced over the past century. Thanks to specialised medical advances and a growing understanding of the role of health, the vast majority of births each year are complication-free and lead to healthy newborns.

However, despite the advances, there are still some cases in which the birth doesn’t go so smoothly. According to the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, around 8 percent of pregnancies involve complications. These can be minor disturbances to severe, life-compromising or life-threatening issues.

In 2008, Yuliya from Ukraine gave birth to twins at 32 weeks. The children, Elizaveta and Vladomir, were born by caesarean section and each weighed a little over three pounds.

Despite Elizaveta catching up with her peers and becoming a healthy child, the birth of Vladomir had left him with severe trauma. Suffering from hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) brain damage and partial atrophy of the optic nerve, young Vladomir was almost blind and unable to fully control his body.

Over the next 10 years, Yuliya tried everything imaginable to improve the life of her son. When there were seemingly no options left, she fortunately heard about the possibilities of stem cell therapy and collecting umbilical cord blood and umbilical cord tissue from newborns.

She was told by doctors that her son would never be able to see and that he would most likely be diagnosed with cerebral palsy later in life. And so, although it was another risk, she decided to have another child.

Collecting Umbilical Cord Stem Cells

Depending on the quality of healthcare available, HIE can occur in between 1.5 to 10 births per 1000. The original injury causes lasting brain damage and can lead to epilepsy, optic nerve atrophy, respiratory problems, and hydrocephalus.

There are only two treatments that have been shown to benefit children with HIE: therapeutic hypothermia (cooling), if applied immediately after birth, and stem cell therapy, which is more beneficial the closer in time it is to the injury.

Over a dozen human clinical trials of cell therapy for HIE have been launched. Studies of cell therapy for HIE with mesenchymal stem cells from umbilical cord tissue (UC-MSC) and mononuclear stem cells from umbilical cord blood (CB-MNC) make up the largest body of evidence.

Thanks to the strong and promising research base, Yiulya was hopeful. In May 2019, she gave birth to a healthy baby boy, his umbilical cord blood stem cells and umbilical cord tissue were delivered directly to the stem cell bank for storage.

Just a few months later, Vladomir received the first infusion of umbilical cord stem cells from his baby brother. Despite him already being an adolescent at the time of treatment, his first twelve-month medical follow up showed signs of significant improvements.

Over the following years, Vladomir continued to improve, with the most miraculous change being in his vision: going from attending a blind school to being able to read the second line of an eye chart.

 Vladomir has started training, crossing the road – and I’m not afraid that he will be hit by a car. He rides a bicycle and scooter on his own, moves around the neighborhood. He recently climbed Hoverla (the highest mountain in Ukraine) – and two years ago I couldn’t even imagine that he would go somewhere by himself. The child did not see the moon in the sky, but now he sees the plane flying and can say its color! It gives me shivers…

—Yuliya

Vladomir received life-transforming benefits thanks to umbilical cord stem cells and is now able to live the life of a healthy child, even being active in sports such as football, wrestling, and cycling.

 

Future Health is one of the world’s largest, most accredited private stem cell banks. We transport and store stem cells samples from over 94 countries, including umbilical cord stem cells, cord tissue, and dental pulp stem cells. Contact our team to discover how to bank your children’s future health.