Regenerative medicine could restore youth to seniors in 15 years

By Dick Pelletier

     Sometime in the next 15 years, a senior might look into the mirror and wonder, “Who is that gorgeous person?” Their reflection would reveal a young body with natural hair color, resilient skin, perfect vision, real teeth, and an incredibly sharp mind and memory.

     Welcome to the world of regenerative medicine where a recent government report declared this futuristic technology to be the next phase of American healthcare. This announcement has prompted officials to create the Federal Initiative for Regenerative Medicine (FIRM) with an aggressive goal to provide affordable tissues and organs “on demand” for every citizen by as early as 2020.

     Derived from biology, biochemistry, physics, engineering and nano-science, this amazing technology can regenerate damaged tissues and organs in vivo (in the living body) by stimulating irreparable organs into healing themselves, and grow them in vitro (in the laboratory) when the body cannot heal itself.

     Though theories differ widely, most experts agree that to successfully combat aging, researchers must first find cures for all of the diseases associated with aging – heart disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, dementia, muscle and bone deficiencies, hearing and sight loss, and many other illnesses.

     Most scientists believe that stem cell therapies represent the best remedy to eliminate these diseases. As we age, the stem cell reserves we are born with decline. Cells lose their ability to regenerate and repair tissue, causing our skin, organs, immune structure, muscles, and other areas, to deteriorate.

     Researchers believe that by replacing aging cells with new stem cells, most of these age-related diseases can be stopped. And as a bonus, patients receiving stem cell therapies will also experience feelings of increased energy, vigor and strength; their bodies will actually become more youthful.

     FIRM provides the following timeline for development of this cutting edge technology:

By 2012 – Develop multiple applications for skin, cartilage, bone, blood vessel, and some urological products; solve cell sourcing issues, giving researchers access to the materials they need to design new therapies; establish cost-effective means of production, paving the way for future products; and create specialized cell banks for tissue storage, allowing storage of viable “off the shelf” products.

By 2017 – Further understand stem cell and progenitor cell biology; engineer smart degradable biocompatible scaffolding; develop microfabrication and nanofabrication technologies to produce tissues with their own complete vascular circulation; and develop complex organ patches that could repair damaged pieces of the heart or other organs.

By 2022 – Create regenerative medicine materials to replace diseased and damaged structures in most of the body; re-grow damaged tissues or organs such as an entire heart, lung, kidney, or other body part.

     Regenerative medicine promises to put an end to America’s trillion dollar health bill and it will bridge most people alive today into the “roaring 20s” where disease and aging will no longer be a drain on human energies. By mid-2020s, the only remaining causes of death in the U.S. could be accidents and violence from crime or wars.

     Could a world without aging and sickness ever become reality? Although there are major challenges to this scenario, positive futurists believe that this “magical future” will happen. By 2022, that ‘kid in the mirror’ could be you!

This article appeared in various print publications and on-line blogs. Comments always welcome.