Stem cells provide a potent treatment for frailty (Nature)

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Elderly people with frailty, which affects up to one-quarter of over-50s, increased their endurance after a single dose of stem cells.

A single dose of stem cells can help older people with frailty to build up their endurance, a study finds1. The study’s authors say that the results offer the strongest evidence to date for an effective treatment for frailty, which affects as many as one-quarter of people aged 50 or older2.

“For the first time, you have a treatment that targets accelerated ageing,” which can manifest as frailty, says Jorge Ruiz, a study author and geriatrician at Memorial Healthcare System in Hollywood, Florida.

Debilitating condition

There is no single accepted definition of frailty. But researchers generally agree that people with the condition have lower physical endurance and a higher risk of dying compared with others of the same age. They also take longer to recover from events such as a fall.

Because frailty describes a set of physical symptoms that do not share a single molecular cause, relatively few research groups have tried to develop treatments specific to the condition.

All participants were between 70 and 85 years old and had frailty, although all could walk.

Nine months after treatment, those who had received the highest dose of stem cells walked about 60 metres farther, on average, in a six-minute walk test than they had before receiving the therapy — about a 20% improvement.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-00584-y

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An iron infusion may be another stay against encroaching frailty. Anemia, which increases with age, is associated with fatigue, confusion, lethargy, and a progressive loss of strength.

A steady decrease in iron stores–iron, ferritin, hemoglobin–is a well-known side-effect of chronic kidney disease, which I’ve had for seven years. My nephrologists, a conservative bunch, wouldn’t prescribe an iron infusion, even though my blood tests show a clear case anemia. Fortunately, my PCP, who has a more liberal bent, just set me up for an infusion.

The effects of an infusion are almost immediate, while pills and supplements can take months to work, if they work at all. I expect to see an improvement in many area, such as mood, attitude, and general activity level. I should also see a sharp increase in my running speed.

This all shows that, once again, the treatment we do or don’t receive depends very much on the doctor we have. It shouldn’t be this subjective. We shouldn’t have to go doc shopping to get what we need and want. Fortunately, the old regime is yielding to changing times, giving more independence to the patient.

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