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Related: About this forumLab-made "mini organs" helping doctors treat cystic fibrosis
Maria Cheng, Ap Medical Writer
Updated 3:12 am, Wednesday, August 23, 2017
UTRECHT, Netherlands (AP) Els van der Heijden, who has cystic fibrosis, was finding it ever harder to breathe as her lungs filled with thick, sticky mucus. Despite taking more than a dozen pills and inhalers a day, the 53-year-old had to stop working and scale back doing the thing she loved best, horseback riding.
Doctors saw no sense in trying an expensive new drug because it hasn't been proven to work in people with the rare type of cystic fibrosis that van der Heijden had.
Instead, they scraped a few cells from van der Heijden and used them to grow a mini version of her large intestine in a petri dish. When van der Heijden's "mini gut" responded to treatment, doctors knew it would help her too.
"I really felt, physically, like a different person," van der Heijden said after taking a drug and getting back in the saddle.
More:
http://www.chron.com/news/medical/article/Lab-made-mini-organs-helping-doctors-treat-11951823.php
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Lab-made "mini organs" helping doctors treat cystic fibrosis (Original Post)
Judi Lynn
Aug 2017
OP
trotsky
(49,533 posts)1. That she is 53 is a testament to the amazing progress we've made against CF.
It is fantastic that progress continues.
forgotmylogin
(7,539 posts)2. At first, I thought it said "Lab-made 'mini orgasms'..."
And read the story eagerly with my credit card ready to donate to the cause.
ret5hd
(20,540 posts)4. Amazon.com can handle your needs overnight if need be:
forgotmylogin
(7,539 posts)5. I appreciate the link.
My female friends say that thing is the best!
And with all seriousness, the concept of testing medication on patient's regrown tissue is an amazing advancement, and I hope it helps a lot of people in the future!
Duppers
(28,127 posts)3. Fantastic news!!
People need all the help they can get with his horrible disease.