November 12, 2009

expert reaction to news of trials involving stem cells to create breast tissue

The trials involve the use of stem cells to grow breast tissue which could potentially allow cancer patients to regrow the breasts following mastectomy.

Prof Anthony Hollander, ARC Professor Of Rheumatology And Tissue Engineering, University of Bristol, said:

“The attractions of this approach are its simplicity and the fact that the tissue growth occurs inside the body. At the time of implanting the cells the surgeon redirects the vasculature of the body which keeps a good blood supply to the implant. That is in itself nothing new, but combining it with a cell implant is an interesting step. The technological advance is the use of a biomaterial cage used to trap the cells in the right place. In future this cage may be biodegradable so that it does not have to be removed. If it’s tried and it works that will be a really nice approach.

“This is unlikely to generate fully functioning breast tissue that can produce milk, rather it’s a cosmetic alteration that is essentially one of space filling. There is one note of caution which is that this procedure is first likely to be used on cancer patients and they’ll have to be able to demonstrate a technique that guarantees that all the cancerous cells are removed and none are grown up in the process, so there is still some way to go.”