First-hand #StemCell #surgery! On a dog!

Animal health »

Yesterday I was invited to visit the Animal Medical Center, a not-for-profit veterinary hospital located here in New York City. I found out about the AMC while doing research for the World Animal Heath Congress, and invited one of its staff members, Dr. Pamela Schwartz, to speak at the event. Her specialty is orthopedic surgery, which includes treatments using autologous stem cells. Some of her colleagues were doing a stem cell injection on a dog suffering from kidney dysplasia, so she invited me to come out and watch the procedure.

I met with Dr. Schwartz around 1:00, and she advised me to follow her around as she was pulled in many different directions to see many different animal patients. We were quickly running from room to room, with Dr. Schwartz examining dogs and cats while I tried to stay out of the way. The first dog we saw actually belonged to comedian and 30 Rock star Tracy Morgan. He had surgery a few weeks ago, but had jumped off of a bed and needed to be reexamined.

After that we saw a cat with a fractured leg that needed to be restrained by an entire team of doctors and interns. Words cannot describe the ungodly noises this animal was making, but needless to say he was not very happy. Later we passed a golden retriever being shaved for a procedure and examined a pit bull with a torn ligament. The pit bull had received stem cells in the past for arthritis, but needed additional surgery for the ligament.

The Animal Medical Center is an incredible facility by human heath standards, yet everything is catered to dogs, cats, and other small animals. There is an entire radiology division, complete with MRI and CT Scan. There was a dermatology unit and a physical therapy department. The PT room had underwater treadmills, canine acupuncture charts, and a special mat that measures gait and pressure on each foot (or paw).

After getting a full tour, Dr. Schwartz passed me off to her colleagues doing the kidney study. Dr. Chick Weisse and Dr. Allyson Berent work in Interventional Radiology Services at the AMC. The procedure I was watching was on a 5-year-old German Shorthaired Pointer named Baron. Baron’s kidneys were failing, and transplants are not possible in dogs because of very high rates of rejection. His last shot was a dose of stem cells, delivered right into the renal arteries. Stem cells injected into the bloodstream get transported to all points of the body, with each organ skimming some off the top. By the time they reach the kidneys, they are not nearly as concentrated, so Drs. Berent and Weisse were injecting them straight into the arteries of the kidneys. They made a small incision and routed a catheter, hooking it in the renal arteries as they slid it down.  As a non-vet, I very much appreciated Dr. Berent’s diagram.

The surgery to extract the stem cells took place on Tuesday. A small sample of fat was extracted from Baron and sent to Vet-Stem in California for processing. Within 48 hours, the vials were back and ready to be injected. Vet-Stem CEO Bob Harman is also presenting on stem cells at the World Animal Health Congress in December. This little vial contains stem cells and other fluids and proteins that help cells regenerate. Because they come from Baron, the chance of his body rejecting them is almost non-existent.

These screens show the catheter inside Baron’s kidneys. Dr. Berent told us that the first dose of stem cells is the least effective, but they expect exponential improvement on the second treatment. Renal stem cell treatments are still relatively new, and the AMC staff has treated less than 10 dogs so far. There is potential to use this same surgical technique on the heart, liver, lungs, or even brain to treat a number of health issues. Because the AMC sees so many animal patients, they can carry out studies on dogs and cats that are already sick, rather than harming a dog’s kidneys for the sake of trying to fix them. 

This surgery took place at around 3:30, and Baron was cleared to head home by 8pm. Baron received one vial of stem cells now, and will have another surgery next week for the second dose. Depending on how well it works, he may also have a third dose in another month. After all was said and done, all Baron had to show for his day in Interventional Radiology was a small shaved patch on his leg and a few stiches. Hopefully the treatments will be successful and Baron will get more time with his human family.

I want to thank Dr. Schwartz, Dr. Weisse, and Dr. Berent for letting me hang around all afternoon. They actually let me stay and watch a second surgery, but the pictures were a little more gory, so I won’t include them here. Everyone at the Animal Medical Center was incredible during my visit, from the vets and surgeons all the way down to the interns and volunteers. The amazing work being done here is not-for-profit, so if you would like to donate to their cause, visit this page. Contributions will help fund research like this, which may someday be available to humans as well. If you’d like to visit the AMC, I’m sure they would love to have you.

To learn more about animal health, and to hear from Bob Harman of Vet-Stem and Pam Schwartz of the Animal Medical Center, check out the World Animal Health Congress.

Me, wearing a lead vest and thyroid guard (They caught me mid-blink)