Stem Cells in Sports
It’s not just about the injuries on the field.
No matter who you are or where you come from, it is a near certainty that you have either casually watched or fervently followed professional sporting competitions at some level. Even if it’s just once every four years for the World Cup or the Olympics, we have all had moments when we gather and marvel at the incredible physical feats of the world’s most talented athletes. We envy their skill and try in vain to replicate their moves. When we’re young, we fantasize about achieving that level of greatness and shrug off challenges with our determination. There is a larger-than-life aura that surrounds our most prominent athletes, so much so that they appear invincible to us. We often forget the toll that competing at that level takes on the physical health of professional athletes — they are not invincible; they are human, just like the rest of us.
Elite athletes who perform at the peak of what is possible push the absolute limits of the human body. To even attempt to understand the physical stress they endure, all you have to do is take part in a single training session. There’s nothing simple or casual about a practice, or easy about the preparation. Athletes often push themselves to go well beyond what most of us believe is physically possible. And yet, all of their hard work and effort is almost entirely focused on a finite phase in their lives — that all too narrow window of time when we can reach our physical apex. And when you’re a career athlete or on a national team representing your country, there is a limited number of hours and days to practice and perfect your craft in order to perform at your absolute best when it matters most. The pressure and strain that this demand puts on the mind and body is immense, so it comes as no surprise that many athletes experience numerous physical ailments following retirement. The human body is incredibly durable but repeated trauma is not easily overcome.
It has been a long-time desire of Donna Chang, Founder and CEO of Hope Biosciences, to explore the possibility of treatment for elite athletes to help alleviate some of the concerns associated with looming retirement and future chronic pain and injury. We are just now beginning to get a clearer picture of the long-term effects of concussions and sub-concussive events on the brain and the barriers they pose to full physical recovery. Popular perception is that traumatic brain injury in athletes is reserved for full-contact sports. But studies are increasingly demonstrating that even seemingly routine plays, like a header in soccer, can, over time, result in significant damage to the brain.
When these professionals suit up to represent our universities, cities, states, and nations we are inspired and united, both in victory and defeat. The impact they have on our connection to society is profound. So, naturally, Donna was thrilled when Case Keenum, professional football player in the NFL currently playing for the Cleveland Browns, approached her looking to learn more about stem cell therapy, research, and banking services. Case was born and raised in Texas and played college football for the University of Houston Cougars, setting multiple national records for passing and touchdowns thrown before being signed by the Houston Texans in 2012. As a professional athlete with a young family, Case’s decision to bank his stem cells at Hope Bio was motivated by a desire to ensure a healthy future for himself and his loved ones. As the career of an athlete doesn’t typically extend far beyond their 30’s, Case wisely recognized the urgency of his decision to invest in an insurance safeguard to mitigate future health uncertainties.
Donna is always saying, “Stem cell banking is for everybody!” And the team at Hope Bio sees this at work every day. We have clinical trials on traumatic brain injury, neurological diseases including Alzheimer’s and ALS, autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, but also wish to find solutions for chronic pain and joint injury. We have a growing list of clients who have banked their own and their newborn’s stem cells, including many seniors who recognized the incredible potential and benefits of having their very own Master Cell Bank in place.
“We don’t know what tomorrow holds, in this day and age. Anything that could help my health, and my family’s health in the future, I’ll be ready to go.” — Case Keenum
What athletes like Case can do in their element often seems miraculous to us. If there is a highest level to which humans can rise physically, it is exemplified by the most elite athletes in the world. We see them continuously redefine possibility, and we hope to do the same one day in sports medicine. We envision the future of sports medicine to be a world where athletes can regularly use their very own stem cells in the treatment and prevention of disease.
