Emerging stem cell based strategies for treatment of childhood diseases

Cell therapy is an important regenerative medicine approach, in which either differentiated cells or stem cells capable of differentiation are transplanted into an individual with the objective of yielding specific cell types in the damaged tissue and consequently restoring its function. The most successful example of cell therapy is hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, leading to regeneration of patient's blood cells, now a widely established procedure for many hematopoietic diseases. Development of cellular therapies for other tissues then followed in the footsteps of the hematopoietic experience. Nowadays, there are numerous ongoing clinical trials using various types of stem cells and some of them become approved cell-based products for use by patients.The aim of this review is to highlight some of advances and challenges of cell-based therapies including:
- New trends in HSCT.
- Clinical applications of new biopharmaceuticals and cell sources.
- New frontiers in regenerative and gene therapies.
- Broadening perspectives for adoptive immunotherapy.
- Collaboration between medical science, health care providers, governing bodies and biopharmaceutical industry.
- Challenging global issues; accessibility to effective therapy, concerted effort to coordinate regulation processes, ethical concerns and financial costs.
- Future dynamics of regenerative medicine including ethical, financial and global issues associated with these developments.