Edinburgh: Scottish scientists have developed a new treatment that could prevent the progression of malignant liver disease.
Cutting edge therapy is the first method that can be used to treat cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is a condition in which liver tissue is damaged by eating a high-fat diet, drinking alcohol, and long-term infections with hepatitis B and C.
Currently, there is no drug or treatment to prevent or reverse this condition.
In this treatment, developed at the University of Edinburgh, scientists take blood samples from patients and extract white cells called monocytes from them. These cells are infection-fighting cells that usually stay in the blood for a few days and later become macrophages (cells that repair damaged tissue) in the body’s tissues.
The scientists created large amounts of macrophages using monocytes in the laboratory and transplanted them into the livers of patients.
Experts believe that people with severe cirrhosis make fewer effective macrophages due to damage to the liver caused by the disease. Researchers are hopeful that these cells, made outside the body, will reverse the condition by better healing the affected liver.
The results of the research were presented at a conference held in Boston, USA, in which it was reported that in the experiment, 26 patients with cirrhosis underwent this treatment, and this year there was no obvious deterioration in their condition, but 24 such Of the patients who did not receive this therapy, four became critical and three died.
Professor Stuart Forbes, a hepatologist and head of research at the University, said that more research is needed to determine the effectiveness of this treatment in humans, but that this method of treatment has shown an effect in animals. The researchers are encouraged by the results of the study.