Researchers at the Motamed Cancer Research Center, ACECR, in collaboration with Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), have successfully developed an advanced treatment for knee arthritis using stem cells.

According to the Public Relations office of Motamed Cancer Research Center, ACECR, arthritis is the most common joint disease that can lead to chronic pain and severe disability in patients. The idea of treating arthritis with intra-arterial injection of mesenchymal stem cells is a new concept, and clinical trial studies in this field are limited, with most studies being conducted on animals. Given the complete treatment of patients suffering from severe knee arthritis and the high population of individuals affected by this disease in Iran, this method could be recommended to other physicians and extended to relevant treatment centers.

Maaedeh Roozbehani, a medical student and research specialist at the Motamed Cancer Research Institute, ACECR, stated that her innovative idea for arthritis treatment, in collaboration of the Motamed Cancer Research Center, ACECR, and Professor Ghannati, the President of Tehran University of Medical Sciences, using stem cells from the Stem Cell Bank of the Hematology, Oncology, and Stem Cell Transplantation Research Center at Shariati Hospital, has been successfully tested on 30 knee arthritis patients. She emphasized: "In this innovative method, instead of directly injecting stem cells into the joint, we inject them into the knee joint artery, which leads to a more effective and faster treatment."

She continued by saying that arthritis is a common joint disease. OA or arthritis is a subset of this disease, affecting a significant number of men and women of 60 to 65-years age range. She further explained that with this method that has no side effects, joint pain and dryness decrease significantly within a few days.

Dr. Roozbehani also mentioned that imaging taken from the affected area shows the production of new cells and cartilage repair within a month, and the effectiveness of the grafting of stem cells through this method in cartilage repair could last for several years.