When we first met Ken Milles two years ago

Stem cells help regenerate damaged heart without moncler jackets There is remarkable new evidence that stem cells can repair a damaged heart and the early goings suggest it is a powerful effect. The findings were presented at a meeting of the American Heart Association on Monday, but CBS News has been following this therapy for two years. It is important to note that this is just the beginning of trials for this treatment and it is not clear where all of this will lead or how many patients it might help. CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker reports on what happened to the very first patient who received this treatment. When we first met Ken Milles two years ago, he had suffered a serious heart attack. "The artery that was 98 percent blocked -- that particular type of blockage is called the widow-maker," he said, "because it's the one where typically when people get it, (claps hands) it's over. They're dead. Moncler jackets for women, cheap moncler women down jackets on sale. At age 39, with 30 percent of his heart damaged, he faced a diminished life of limited exertion and shortness of breath. So he volunteered to be patient No. 1 in a risky clinical study -- the first person ever to receive an infusion of heart stem cells. The experiment was the brainchild of Dr. Eduardo Marban of Cedars Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles. "If someone's had a heart attack," said Marban, "and they have seen part of their heart turn into scar, that is irreversible. It's there for life." Seeking to reverse heart injury, Dr. Marban used a catheter with tiny pincers to snip bits of healthy tissue from Milles' heart. Since the heart produces so few stem cells on its own, Dr. Marban in a laboratory coaxed the bits of tissue into manufacturing millions of stem cells . He then deposited Milles' own laboratory-grown stem cells into the damaged area of his heart, hoping it would repair itself and beat more strongly. Previous studies have used bone marrow stem cells with mostly disappointing results, prompting Dr. Marban to try this new approach. Cheap moncler women vest for sale, buy 2011 new style women moncler vest. "Now we have completed the study and we have outstanding results that are very encouraging to us," said Marban.