EVMS studying adult bone marrow stem cell therapy for diabetes

It's part of a first-of-its- king study in Virginia. 23-year-old Sarah Piscitelli is taking part in the first-of-its- kind study in Virginia. She was diagnosed with type-one Diabetes February 25th and has daily insulin injections. She'll be insulin-dependent until a cure is found. The testing at Strelitz Diabetes Center is all about finding a cure. Sarah is the first patient for Doctor Aaron Vinick, who is the principle investigator for the study.

She fits the very specific criteria – newly diagnosed and between the ages of 18 and 30 – to receive the drug Prochymal, which utilizes adult stem cells. The study focuses on the drug's ability to protect normal pancreatic tissue from autoimmune attack and repair damaged pancreatic beta cells, which could lead to an increase in insulin production and a decrease in circulating blood glucose. "If we can reduce your insulin dose by 50 or 60 percent, many studies have shown, we reduce the likelihood of long-term complications, " Dr. Vinick explains.

Sarah is on her third and final infusion. "So far, I haven't had barely any reaction from it. I get a little bit of a headache afterwards," she says. From here, doctors will Sarah and her diabetes. Study participation will last about two years at 20 centers nationwide. Researchers hope to recruit 60 patients nationwide for the study. Half of them will receive a placebo, the other half the drug...more