Baby cells hope for sick brother

Joanna Stanley and Michael Emms, her partner's son
A Monmouthshire couple plan to use the umbilical cord of the baby they are expecting for stem cell treatment for the unborn child's 20-year-old brother.
Joanna Stanley, 27, is pregnant by partner Julian Emms, 41, whose other son, Michael, has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.

It is hoped the baby due in September, a boy, already named Rhys, will be a match for the younger Mr Emms, 20.

The treatment will be performed in America as it is illegal in the UK.

Experts believe the cells could reverse the muscle wastage Mr Emms has suffered since the illness was diagnosed.

The plan is to freeze stem cells from baby Rhys's umbilical cord and fly them to a clinic at the Institute of Cellular Medicine, in Boston, where they will be implanted into Mr Emms' spinal cord.

Mr Emms, of Caerwent near Newport, has been told he will not see his 21st birthday without the treatment.

Ms Stanley said she was six-weeks pregnant when she read on the internet about stem cell treatment for motor neurone disease.

She said: "Mike's best chance is to have cells from a donor who is a close genetic match. The best he is going to get is from his own brother even though he is not born yet.


Julian Emms and Joanna Stanley admit it's a 'long shot'

"To get a match otherwise could take three or four years and Michael doesn't have years, he only has months.

"It's a race against time but Rhys will have a DNA link. We know it's a long shot and we are all hoping against hope."

Julian Emms said: "This disease is meant to affect old people. Not my young and healthy son."

Michael Emms is losing the mobility in his limbs, especially in his hands and suffers from extreme fatigue.

The Motor Neurone Disease Association (MNDA) say most sufferers die within two to five years of diagnosis - with half dying within 14 months.

Julian said: "When doctors first diagnosed Mike, none of us knew what it was.

Nerve cells

"Then when we did some research, we couldn't get our heads round it. This disease is meant to affect old people. Not my young and healthy son.

"It would be just amazing if little Rhys saved Michael. Rhys will be our miracle baby."

Motor neurone disease affects about 5,000 people in the UK. It is most common among people aged 50 to 70, and tends to affect men slightly more than women.

It is a progressive disorder caused by the breakdown of the nerve cells which control muscle activity.

People with the condition suffer muscle-wasting, loss of mobility, and difficulties with speech, swallowing and breathing.

Stem cell research has been condemned by pro-life campaigners and church groups as it often involves harvesting cells from human embryos.

Split

Stem cell therapy is being used to treat motor neurone disease patients in the US and Canada.

But it has yet to be approved by UK health authorities because doctors are split on its effectiveness.

A spokeswoman for the MNDA said: "We are not for or against the treatment but it is at very early stages and not proven that it can have any effect on motor neurone disease."


http://news.bbc.co.uk:80/2/hi/uk_new...st/6904680.stm

UNBORN BABY MAY SAVE BROTHER'S LIFE
DONOR OP TO USE TOT'S STEM CELLS

Exclusive by Richard Smith 18/07/2007



THIS baby scan shows the unborn tot who it is hoped will give his big brother the gift of life.

Controversial stem-cell therapy is the only hope for 20-year-old Michael Emms, who has been struck down by motor neurone disease.

And the baby, due to be born at the end of September and already named Rhys, may be the perfect donor.

Advertisement
Dad Julian, 41, said yesterday: "It would be just amazing if little Rhys saved Michael. We are all hoping Rhys will be our miracle baby.

"The prospect of the treatment has cheered Michael up no end. It's something for him to focus on, a light at the end of the tunnel."

Vital stem cells will be taken from the baby's umbilical cord when Julian's fiancee Joanna Stanley gives birth.

The cells will then be frozen and flown to a clinic in America where they will be implanted into Michael's spinal cord.

Mum-to-be Joanna, 27, said: "Mike's best chance is to have cells from a donor who is a close genetic match. The best he is going to get is from his brother, even though he is not yet born."

She was six-weeks pregnant when she read on the internet about the treatment for motor neurone disease victims and realised immediately it could be Michael's only chance for survival.

She added: "To get a match otherwise could take three or four years and Michael doesn't have years, he only has months.

"Nothing's certain about the treatment, but even a one per cent chance could mean everything."

A year ago Michael, of Caerwent, near Newport, Monmouthshire, was an active young man playing football and working at a DIY warehouse.

But when crippling pain spread through his body last June specialists diagnosed motor neurone disease.

It breaks down the nerve cells which control muscle activity. Victims suffer muscle-wasting, loss of mobility and eventually struggle to speak, swallow and breathe.

Without treatment he is likely to die before his 21st birthday next March. His dad said: "When he was diagnosed we couldn't get our heads round it. This disease is meant to affect old people. Not my young and healthy son."

Michael vowed to beat it but the disease has ravaged his body leaving him virtually housebound.

Julian, who is a nurse, said: "We started researching treatments as it seemed there was very little doctors here could do. We quickly came across this stem-cell therapy. With Joanna being pregnant it seemed like fate."

Stem-cell therapy is used to treat motor neurone disease patients in the US and Canada. But it has yet to be approved in the UK because doctors are split on its effectiveness at repairing sufferers' damaged cells and tissue.

After Rhys is born Michael will fly to the Institute of Cellular Medicine in Boston for treatment. Family, including his mum Teresa, and friends are raising the £27,000 to pay for it with sponsored runs and charity events.

Michael said: "Everyone around me has been so supportive, I feel so grateful. I look at other 20-year-old lads, just normal lads playing footie and I feel jealous. They don't know how lucky they are. I would do anything just to be normal again."

MIKE'S RAP MESSAGE

RAP fan Mike has written a moving song about his illness. Called Falling Down On Me, the first verse goes:

I took a visit to the hospital, my body acting crazy. Told Doc I was feeling weird, my body is all weak,

He says, "Sit down on the table, let us take a little peek."

Believe I'm gonna keep strong, right until my last breath,

I'm always Mike Emms, until there's nuthin else left.

I got love for my family, love for my friends. That's the only real reason why my life was really meant.