Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common problems women present with to their primary care physicians and gynecologists. An exhausting chronic condition, PCOS is one of the most common causes of female infertility, affecting up to 12% of reproductive women in the US, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
In PCOS, the ovary is filled with several fluid-filled cysts, causing damage to the normal ovary tissue and limiting its potential to produce eggs and female reproductive hormones. PCOS can be debilitating, both physically and mentally; the disease is associated with other chronic diseases, including obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and irregular periods, which all lead to poorer overall health.
Patients with this condition also deal with the psychosocial effects of typical PCOS symptoms, including excess body hair, severe acne, male-pattern baldness, and excessive weight gain, making treatment more complex.
PCOS has had no cure until now. With a long course of birth control pills, some of the symptoms may be kept at bay and patients may be able to ovulate and conceive. But in severe cases, these results may not be achievable.
Prodromos Stem Cell Institute, the leading center for stem cell research and treatment, has recently released extensive research findings describing the curative effects of stem cell infusion in PCOS.
In one of the case studies described in the research, stem cell infusion was found to cause a complete reversal of polycystic ovary. This led to a rapid elimination of the patient’s symptoms and a restoration of her reproductive hormone levels.
This case involved a lean athletic 28-year-old woman with PCOS, who had presented to the institute with the chief complaint of thinning hair. She was also noted to have ultrasound-diagnosed polycystic ovary syndrome and abnormal hormone levels. Her periods had been irregular lifelong since menarche at age 14. Her gynecologist had told her that none of these problems were serious enough to require treatment, and her only troubling symptom was mild, but bothersome, scalp hair thinning.
The team at Prodromos Institute told her about the results of stem cell infusion and that intravenous injection of umbilical cord-derived stem cells along with injection of these stem cells underneath the skin of the scalp generally results in hair thickening. Since the patient was not seeking treatment for her PCOS, the team did not address it.
After informed consent, she had an infusion of 100 million umbilical cord-derived AlloRx stem cells from Vitro Biopharma in Golden, Colorado. She also had multiple subdermal injections of 20 million AlloRx stem cells distributed evenly into her scalp.
At her four-month follow-up, she noted definite visible new hair growth and hair thickening. She also, however, noted that her menstrual periods had been completely regular every month beginning the first month after her treatment – for the first time in her life.
Four months after the first treatment she elected to repeat treatment to further accelerate her hair thickening. At her 8-month follow-up, she noticed continued scalp hair thickening and continued regular periods. She also noted that the prior occasional skin breakouts that she used to have were now entirely gone. At this point, the team at Prodromos Institute decided to check her hormone levels and found that they had completely normalized. She had previously had a low progesterone level, characteristic of PCOS, but her repeat level was normal after stem cell treatment.
The team went further to obtain an ultrasound of her ovaries and found something rather shocking – all the previously present cysts were now completely gone. At her last follow-up - 18 months after her first treatment and 14 months after her second - she noticed substantially thicker hair and continued regular periods.
This brings up the exciting possibility that stem cell treatment may have wider application in the treatment, even a cure, of this disorder. This is particularly important since there is no other treatment that directly addresses reversing PCOS.
According to the team at Prodromos Institute, the treatment leveraged the regenerative and reparative potential of stem cells to eliminate the damaged and unhealthy tissue in the ovary, giving room for healthy ovarian tissue to replace them.
“This was an unexpected result; however, it is common for us to find unintended benefits of stem cell treatment and we therefore attempt to be vigilant when following up with our patients.” says Dr. Chadwick Prodromos, Founder of the Prodromos Stem Cell Institute.
However, Dr. Prodromos noted that symptoms may not resolve during the first course of the treatment.
“We will continue to follow up with our patient to see if the results are enduring. However, even if the condition recurs stem cell infusion could always be repeated, and the results monitored. Either way, this is yet another truly exciting application of stem cell technology.” Dr. Prodromos added.
The Insitute is seeking more patients with PCOS to receive a trial of stem cell infusion to evaluate the efficacy of this treatment, which can be a cure for the condition.
About Dr. Chadwick Prodromos
Chadwick C Prodromos, M.D. is the Medical Director and CEO of The Prodromos Stem Cell Institute and also Medical Director of the Foundation for Orthopedics and Regenerative Medicine. Dr. Chadwick Prodromos is a global leader in the use of advanced therapies, including stem cell and platelet-rich plasma, for the treatment of a wide range of diseases and has done extensive research in these areas.
Dr. Prodromos obtained his Bachelor's degree with honors from Princeton University and his MD degree education from the Johns Hopkins Medical School. He served a surgical internship at the University of Chicago, after which he completed his residency training in Orthopedic Surgery at Rush University. He obtained a fellowship in Orthopedics and Sportsmedicine at the Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. Board Certified in Orthopedic Surgery, Dr. Prodromos served as an assistant professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Rush University for nearly three decades and has extensive publications and research in both orthopedics and stem cell treatment.
To learn more about or take part in the stem cell treatment for PCOS at the Prodromos Stem Cell Institute, call 847-699-6810 for a preliminary treatment evaluation and assessment with Dr. Prodromos at zero cost.
