Paralyzed Man Walks Again After Nose Cell Transplant

I cried tears of joy when I saw this story.

As reported on October 21, 2014, at medicalnewstoday.com:

A 40-year-old paralyzed man from Poland can now walk again with the aid of a frame after breakthrough surgery transplanted cells from his nose into his spinal cord, which had been severed in a knife attack.

Darek Fidyka was left paralyzed from the chest down after suffering stab wounds to his back in 2010.

He underwent 19 months of treatment at a Polish hospital, and his doctors say he has recovered some voluntary movement along with some sensation in his legs.

The procedure provided a "bridge" over the injury site so nerve cells (encouraged by the special nose cells) could actually regrow across the scar tissue.

The breakthrough represents decades of pioneering work for Geoffrey Raisman, a professor in the Institute of Neurology at University College London in the UK.

In 1969, he discovered that damaged nerve cells can form new connections, and in 1985, he identified that a type of nose cell - called an olfactory ensheathing cell (OEC) - allows nerve fibers to regenerate into the brain.

How amazing was it when Dr. Raisman said he sees "people no longer being confined to wheelchairs in ten years".

:-)