Authors: Daina M. Chase, Vincent S. Gallicchio.
Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) is a disease that consists of the scarring of the lungs. It is the most common type of pulmonary fibrosis. This disease is irreversible and becomes worse over time. In patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, treatment relies mostly on the clinical application of new drugs. However, these drugs do not repair damaged lung tissue. These medications have the ability to slow down the progressive disease. However, stem cell treatment has become a popular subject in the treatment for this disease, specifically mesenchymal stem cells. This kind of therapy would repair the lung tissue that is damaged thus not delaying the progression of the disease but repairing the lungs of the patient. In addition, the application of exosomes has also gained popularity because of their functionality in intracellular communication. There is a need for regenerating the damaged lung tissue of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis which can be accomplished with stem cell therapy. The clinical application of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been proven safe in patients with this degenerative disease. This finding has excited more research for the application of stem cell therapy in patients with IPF.
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