New cosmetic creams and therapies that make use of stem cells carry bizarre, gruesome risks.

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A woman in Los Angeles went to her doctor with pain and clicking in her eyelid, following a cosmetic procedure a few months earlier. The doctor, Scientific American reports, surgically removed pieces of bone that were growing in the flesh around her eye.

The cosmetic surgery she had had extracted adult stem cells from her belly fat, isolated them, and injected them around her eyes, along with calcium hydroxylapatite as a filler. In the presence of the mineral, the stem cells -- which have the ability to develop into many sorts of cells -- turned into bone.

The FDA has not approved any cosmetic product or treatment involving stem cells, but they are growing in popularity regardless, both in clinics in the U.S. and around the world. The potential of stem cells is thrilling, but they are poorly understood and unpredictable. Expect more stories about bizarre somatic effects in the near future.

[Scientific American]

10 Comments

Stem cell talking about a superficial woman in L.A.:

Eye'd bone her.

ToomeyND,
Pltzzzzzzz.... lol.

Reminds me of a Twilight Zone episode haha

While this is certainly unfortunate for the lady, I think this is a long-coming warning about how stem cells must be more fully understood before they are approved as a method of treatment for humans.

Great! Now men know how to grow an extra bone.

Unfortunate for the lady, but the important thing is that these unapproved therapies will provide invaluable knowledge for the biological mechanisms of stem cells. These are like unhindered experiments. Experiments that are moral grey/wrong, but will help everyone in the long run.

It's for a greater good.

You can stop taking a pill and the chemicals go away. But if you get stem cells, most likely you will have some of those cells or their effects for the rest of your life. And we simply don't know everything they are going to do

That L.A. doctor was gettin his rib back, from HER!

This is what happens when you mess with stem cells.

People and their wacky ideas.



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