Stacey Snyder, 31 years, Non-diagnosable Degenerative Neurological Disease, Bipolar
Date of birth: August 10, 1978
Reported by Stacey's Mother Diane Snyder
Non-diagnosable disease
Our daughter Stacey was diagnosed with delayed development at the age of around 2: she spoke later than other children and had some problems with her short- and long-term memory, but her common sense was absolutely normal. In the end she was your average teenager, loved animals, board games, football & successfully completed high school. Stacey was doing absolutely fine until the age of 19, that is when things suddenly turned very wrong.
7-8 years ago Stacey began having MS-like symptoms, her balance was completely off, she could hardly walk, showed some Parkinson's symptoms - her arms were trembling and food would shake off her fork - and some dementia. An MRI of her head showed a possible minor stroke, but a repeat MRI two years later showed nothing. Stacey was carefully examined at the famous Cleveland clinic with various neurological tests and MRI and PET scan, but the physicians there could tell us nothing. They had never seen anything like it. The diagnosis was: non-diagnosable degenerative neurological disease. Our daughter became nonverbal and mostly sat around with a blank expression on her face, with no interest in anything, not even TV or the Buffalo Bills, her favorite football team beforeshe fell ill. Things were escalating; if Stacey was not sitting around slumped down, she would become aggressive, agitated, anything could set her off. She had problems sleeping, the maximum of sleep she -and therefore I- would get per night, was 1-3 hours, and this was with sedation!
Her medication was constantly changed and added, up to a maximum dose, but nothing seemed to help. We became home bound, it was impossible for Stacey to attend day-care, because she was constantly falling and no one knew, how to handle her. Our social life was minimized; even the visits from our older son and his family became rare, because no one knew, how Stacey would react towards her nephews. I had to quit my job and was taking care of Stacey 24/7. Stacey's psychiatrist was advising us to institutionalize Stacey, for her own good and for ours, because it became very difficult to handle things.
At a time that left us with no place to turn, we found out about the possibility of stem cell treatment for neurological diseases and submitted Stacey's case to the XCell-Center in Cologne. The treating physician gave us a 50/50 chance, thatthings might improve after stem cell treatment. We felt like we had nothing to lose and went for it.
Stem cell treatment July 23, 2008
We flew to Cologne, where stem cells were retrieved from Stacey's bone marrow collected from her hipbone.
"..Stacey is doing better every day"
The cells were reapplied via lumbar puncture in general anesthesia, because no one knew, how Stacey would behave. She was aggressive after she awoke, but she does not remember any of the treatment. We returned home around 4 days after Stacey's stem cell treatment and this is when relatives started to see a difference and improvement in Stacey's facial expression. She no longer had that blank look on her face! Gradually her speech improved and her interest from 5-10 years ago started to return. Her Doctors were amazed by these fast improvements. One month later Stacey was free of any agitation or aggression, she was no longer confused. It was as if she were awaking from a long sleep.
Today Stacey walks without problems, speaks normally, has a normal posture, visits the mall with her aunts, takes therapeutic dancing lessons and she just got herself a new pet - a guinea pig. All Parkinson's signs have diminished; her hands are no longer trembling. She is socially interactive, a loving aunt to her brothers' kids. She is planning to see a game of the Buffalo Bills this year. We make sure that she stays active and partakes in as many social events as possible; we think that this is the best way to stimulate her damaged nerves and give them new impulses. Stacey's quality of life has doubled since the stem cell treatment and so did ours: We are back and alive! We are currently scheduling a second treatment for the end of June 2009.
Recovery Update - December 2009
Stacey is doing better every day. She started a new day program and is the happiest she has been in probably more than 10 yrs. She is doing ceramics and working in a greenhouse with plants. She is beginning to speak in full sentences and even ask questions. We are looking forward for once,to enjoying the holidays with her.
Treatment Evaluation Process
In order to be evaluated for treatment, patients must complete an online medical history form. Once you've completed the online medical history and submitted it, a patient relations consultant will contact you. He or she will assist you with the rest of the evaluation process. Upon treatment approval, your consultant will also assist you with treatment scheduling and trip preparation.
