Chinese doctor to set up stem-cell center in Hungary

Three or four Hungarian families travel to China each month to receive stem-cell treatment for diseases that cannot be cured using traditional methods, said the paper. Currently, the method is used in Hungary only for treating haemopoietic tumors (blood-forming organs).

Clinical trials are underway to apply it for heart muscle regeneration in those who suffered serious heart attacks. A report broadcast by commercial Hungarian TV2 showed that Doctor Hu used stem-cells to rebuild sclerotic blood vessels in the ulcerated legs of people suffering from diabetes. According to an earlier report published in Népszabadság this March, a four-month-old Hungarian girl was treated by Doctor Hu with the help of stem-cells harvested from the umbilical cord to cure a stroke she had suffered during birth.

The results have been favorable so far, but further control examinations will need to be carried out next spring. There have been some skeptical reactions in Hungary, but brain specialist and director of a bio-cybernetics company of the Semmelweiss University Jenő Páli said the Chinese results were convincing. He said he had visited several centers in China this year where stem-cell treatments were used successfully under state supervision. He met several families getting treatment from Dr Hu and the results have been examined at the University of Physical Education. His treatments have been especially successful in young children, Páli said. (english.mti.hu)