STEM CELLS 2017 – DR LEWIS OBI &
CELL SURGICAL NETWORK OF FLORIDA

Dr Lewis Obi continues to maintain the clinical lead in the area of adult stem cell therapies. In February, his local team and international faculty conducted the first ever live work shop for human bioprinting in a private setting. From millions of expanded adult cells, successful bioprinting of a nose and ear from expanded cells was performed.

This month, Dr Obi was a featured speaker at the 4th Annual International meeting of CSN at the Beverly Hilton. Cell Surgical Network has grown from a handful of stem cell physicians to more than 120 affiliates worldwide.

In March and April, spinal injections of stem cells was integrated into the Cell Surgical Network of Florida’s center at Dr Obi’s clinic. In addition, patient’s with Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease and other degenerative conditions are now being treated. COPD will also be integrated into the clinic protocol soon.

Osteoarthritis of peripheral joints and many other conditions of the hands and feet have been treated with a high level of success now for several years and no serious complications have been experienced to date. In contrast to other providers who use stem cells from bone marrow and embryonic cord cells, Dr Obi and CSN uses adipose derived stem cells, (stem cells collected from the patien’t own body fat) for deployment & clinical research. Early stem cell research has traditionally been associated with the controversial use of embryonic stem cells. CSN Florida does not use embryonic stem cells. The new focus is on “non-embryonic, adult mesenchymal stem cells” which are found in a person’s own blood, bone marrow, and fat. Cell therapy around the world is shifting its focus from bone marrow based cells to adipose, (fat) derived cells since the cells are easy to obtain and generally very robust. Adipose fat is abundant and the most reliable source of viable stem cells. The best quality adipose cells are derived from the enzymatic digestion of liposuctioned fat which can be performed at the bedside in an essentially closed system to protect sterility. Autologous stem cells from a person’s own fat are easy to harvest safely under local anesthesia and are abundant in quantities up to 2500 times those seen in bone marrow.

Dr Lewis Obi along with 120 international CSN affiliates have compiled a database of more than 6000 patients confirming safety and efficacy of their treatments. Also, CSN conducts it’s work under the umbrella of two approved IRB’s, (Institutional Review Boards) which distinguishes their protocol from other private providers. As a pioneer of safe practices, Dr Obi conducts all of his work in a fully staffed AHCA licensed surgery center. Specialists from many disciplines include Dr David Heekin (orthopedics), Dr Orlando Florete (pain management) and Dr Mark Homra (Urology).

A research facility was added in April and will study the growth, expansion and behavior of adult stem cells under a controlled environment. This will be conducted in collaboration with international leaders in the area of regenerative medicine. Dr Obi works closely with Dr H.Y. Lee of Seoul who has pioneered the major systems and protocols for producing, expanding and storing stem cells from adult fat. The Medikan International equipment and technology is the international gold standard for adult stem cell science. The goal for CSN of Florida is to be able to avoid sending their patients to offshore facilities to use their own expanded cells. It was announced on June 13th that Governor Abbott of Texas signed a bill proposing this new laws that would allow Texans to use their own stem cells as a medication for ailments: http://www.ksat.com/news/politics/gov-abbott-signs-hb-810-allowing-texans-to-use-own-stem-cells-as-medicine