The stem cells A development explosion

With these feelings we arrived X-Cell Center, two devastated parents searching for a miracle! We had the wonderful opportunity to see Dr. Angy Etou to whom we explained our situation. She carefully examined our daughter and studied her MRI images. She patiently listened to all the details concerning Iarinas case and decided to proceed with the stem cell transplantation. The stem cells were extracted from Irina´s hip and were re-injected into her spine. Fortunately, there were no side effects related to the anesthesia or to the transplantation procedure. Right after the treatment one good thing after another occured.

The results: A development explosion
Subsequently Iarina experienced a development explosion. Three weeks after the stem cell transplantation we noticed that the number of her seizures decreased, which was also confirmed by a neurologist and an EEG. After introducing another drug, her seizures gradually disappeared. A month and a half after the treatment Iarina began to say "mama" and "papa" (papa means food in our language). After that, there followed other words (like "ups, "goanga"-meaning little bug, "dei"-some sort of "give me"). At present, she understands absolutely everything we tell her and she interacts with us in a perfectly normal fashion. Two months after the treatment Iarina was able to turn over in bed by herself and change into whatever position she preferred. At night, when we put her to bed on her stomach she immediately rolled over on her back. If she wanted to get a toy, she could easily roll over towards it. Four and half months after the treatment she succeeded in sitting up by herself. Now she does this routinely. Eight months have passed since the transplantation. Now Iarina is able to stand on her own and when we hold one of her hands she walks around the whole house. She can even take up to 15 - 20 steps all by herself. Due to the stem cell therapy, her daily physiotherapy exercises are showing great results.

At present Iarina still exhibits a delay in her development, her motor functions are still affected and she is under epileptic medication, however this transplant has given us more than we could have ever hoped for. It has given us more than just minor improvements; it has given us our child back! Finally Iarina is a child, not just a tortured soul strapped in a car seat!

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Second stem cell treatment in January 2009
Fortunately, this third transplant was made possible by the financial help of friends and unknown individuals who understood our needs and decided to help give Iarina another chance. "Lion's Club Cluj" provided us the biggest financial support this time.

Based on Iarina's fantastic progress, we had no hesitations this time- we did it without blinking. And once again, we were right! It was the right decision. Iarina's speech progress was astonishing this time. Little by little, she becomes a "sponge". She is reproducing more and more words; she is constantly trying to express her thoughts. Of course, this is only the beginning, but this is a huge step for a child who initially was considered to have almost no hope regarding speech development.

The transplant itself went well this time too. Right after the procedure she was under strict supervision until the minute she left the hospital. All the needed information was given to us, with no hesitation.
This time, she had 3 strong headache episodes during the next few days. We could tell that she was in pain: she was holding her head, crying and acting like never before. Fortunately, the pain was gone just as suddenly as it appeared. The pain medication provided by the clinic's doctor was also helpful. This was the only "inconvenience" connected to the transplant.

From the first stem cell transplant until now, Iarina's progress has been constant and evident. We still have a long way to go, but if we look back to where we were, we realize how lucky we are: lucky to live in modern days with unbelievably advanced medical procedures; and above all, lucky that our daughter is a fighter! In spite of her complicated life, the smile on her face and the sparkle in her eyes become brighter every day!