Susan Cossabone set to show the nation the possibilities of cellular bone transplantation in 2012 Tournament of Roses Parade®
AlloSource, a leading developer, processor and distributor of bone and soft-tissue allografts for use in surgical procedures around the world, will this year sponsor a living symbol of the evolving possibilities of tissue transplantation as a float rider aboard the annual Donate Life float in the Tournament of Roses Parade®. Susan R. Cossabone, an equine instructor from Egg Harbor City, NJ, was no longer able to ride horses following a devastating car accident. But now Cossabone thrives and rides again thanks to a cutting-edge product consisting of bone and adult mesenchymal stem cells from a tissue donor. On January 2nd, Cossabone will join 27 other riders from around the country on the Donate Life float, now in its ninth year, in a tribute to the millions of people touched by organ, tissue and blood donation.
AlloSource CEO Tom Cycyota said ““We are thrilled to once again sponsor a float rider aboard the Donate Life Rose Parade float as a way to increase awareness about tissue donation, which is still lesser understood than organ donation but can have the same life-saving and life-enhancing benefits. Susan is a symbol of the exciting new ways we can do more with life, thanks to the courageous generosity of tissue donors and their families.”
At 77 years old, Jane Przedpelski describes herself as “happily active.” A Colorado resident, she finds pleasure in camping, snowshoeing and walking in the mountains and the desert with her husband. However, a fall from a ladder and subsequent broken leg threatened her active lifestyle.
The fall resulted in a broken tibia, or shin bone. Doctors recommended that she have surgery to repair the bone, as it was not likely to heal well enough on its own. The surgery involved implanting a steel plate against her bone for structural support. Additionally, after finding osteoporosis in the bone during surgery, the doctor chose to also transplant bone grafts from a deceased human donor into Jane’s injured bone to allow it to strengthen over time.
An unfamiliar concept to Jane, she questioned her doctor about the bone tissue transplant.
“I asked the doctor if compatibility studies had been done,” Jane said. “He explained that contrary to organ transplants, it was not necessary.” (more…)
Connie Hilger eagerly anticipated her adult son’s visit home for Christmas in 2009. During his visit, he teamed up with his former classic rock band for a reunion show at a local pub. Connie’s family, as well as the family of another band member, were excited to be together for the holidays and were enjoying the show. Suddenly, trouble broke out in the pub.
Connie says “If one life can breathe easier because of me, then I’ve gained my own measure of success. If I could speak to my donor I would say: thank you for helping to make people at a small county fair smile. You’re a success.”
“An argument erupted behind me,” Connie said. “I stood up to move to the other side of the table but my snow boot caught on the rung of the chair just as one man pushed another into me, knocking me over.” Shortly thereafter, as Connie was still lying on the floor, a large man fell onto her legs. Connie sustained serious injuries: her left leg was broken and her right ACL was blown out.
Aside from the pain and day-to-day struggles that dealing with two injured legs presented, Connie’s injuries also meant she could not adequately do her job, which she had a great passion for. After serving as Montana’s property tax supervisor for 30 years, Connie was at the time working as the local county fair manager. Although the work was taxing (including everything from negotiating entertainment contracts to cleaning horse stalls), she absolutely loved it.
“Seeing smiling faces at a summertime county fair is one of the warmest feelings a heart can experience,” Connie said. (more…)
It was the holidays in 2005 and Sarah Tomicich was a young professional excited about her new job in the finance department of a large Denver company. Fun-loving and outgoing, Sarah was happy to offer up her talents for the playful “Stupid Human Tricks” competition at the company’s annual year-end party.
Sarah’s trick was a squirm-inducing move she’d been doing since she was a little girl: rising up on her tip toes, she would rotate her feet until her toes were pointing straight behind her body, with her legs still together. But the trick didn’t go smoothly this time.
“My ankle popped; I thought I broke it,” Sarah said. “The pain was so bad. It was horrible.”
During an initial trip to the doctor, Sarah’s injury was misdiagnosed as a sprain. She went home hoping it would heal on its own. For the next several years Sarah tried to deal with the pain, but her ankle was never the same. The injury began to take a serious toll on her active lifestyle: she could no longer do the things she loved, including skiing and running. She would push herself to play team sports like kickball, but be miserable from the pain for days afterwards. (more…)
OrthoSuperSite reported this week on promising 7-year follow up results for patients who have received a meniscal allograft transplant – the transplant of a meniscus and cartilage from a deceased donor. This procedure is for treatment of patients who have suffered a torn meniscus, suffer from knee pain and do or may suffer from arthritis.
According to the story: “Brian J. Cole, MD, MBA, presented his group’s findings at the 2011 Annual Meeting of the Arthroscopy Association of America … Cole reported that the procedure could reduce pain, increase range of motion and improve joint function in the long term.”
We are so pleased to see media coverage of tissue transplantation, because it can have life-saving and life-enhancing benefits just like organ transplantation. However, tissue donation is still lesser understood.
Kudos to the Lubbock FOX network for shedding light on this issue, noting “a tissue donor has the ability to help a burn victim or give a star athlete a chance to return to their sport after a major injury like tearing of an ACL. Across the nation there is a massive demand for skin as well as sports-related orthopedic tissue.”
I found this article very interesting and intriguing as it relates to the repair of articular cartilage utilizing amnion tissue, the membrane that encases the placenta. As the article conveys, it is a versatile tissue that has the potential to serve as a solution to the challenges of healing wounds and other soft tissue ailments. What is also great is that it makes use of the placenta following c-section births, when it would otherwise be discarded. Most recently, several companies have begun manufacturing and distributing amnion to assist surgeons with procedures involving neurology, spine and orthopedics. I look forward to providing the medical community with new ways to use amnion. Check out the article I read to learn more about how amnion tissue could be used in the future.
- Tom Carter, Product Manager
We are very proud to this year be sponsoring Manuel Salazar as a float rider in the 2010 Rose Bowl Parade aboard the Donate Life float. Manuel was rendered a quadruple amputee following a devastating construction site accident. Thanks to his incredible spirit and determination as well as allograft tissue transplants, Manuel now thrives as a quadruple amputee.
Last month, a team from AlloSource traveled to the North American Spine Society (NASS) annual meeting in San Francisco, where we unveiled two pioneering new products: AlloStem Stem Cell Bone Growth Substitute and AlloWrap Natural Wound Cover.
Orthopedic spine surgeons at the event told us how powerful AlloStem Stem Cell Bone Growth Substitute, a new bone growth substitute made from adult stem cells, will be as a biologic solution. The second product we introduced, AlloWrap Natural Wound Cover, is a natural biological wound cover that has shown impressive results in animal studies.
This was a key industry meeting for us, as AlloSource is now the world’s largest processor of live cellular bone growth substitutes – an accomplishment we’re very proud of. At the show we mingled with some of the world’s spine care leaders; there were nearly 4,000 in attendance from all over the globe.
Check out our brief video (above) for a tour of the AlloSource booth at the event.
AlloSource is the world’s largest processor of fresh cartilage, skin allografts and live cellular bone growth substitutes, including adult stem cell grafts. Most of the public is not aware that adult stem cells can be recovered and transplanted without controversy from adult human organ and tissue donors.
AlloStem Stem Cell Bone Growth Substitute, an adult human stem cell bone graft, is recovered from adult human adipose tissue and is processed and cryopreserved by AlloSource into a stem cell bone graft used by surgeons to promote bone growth and healing. Adipose tissue is a rich source of a wide variety of stem cells, and some laboratory studies indicate it is the human body’s primary source of stem cells. (more…)
Discover the variety of clinical applications for bone and tissue allografts, including orthopaedic, spine, sports medicine, oral maxillofacial, podiatry, periodontal, urology, oncology and trauma.
Or, learn more about skin allografts used for the treatment of burns, including function, structure, donor recovery and clinical application.
The following byline from AlloSource has appeared in hundreds of media outlets around the country
Amidst the constantly changing world of medicine, innovative research from some of the world’s leading surgeons is finding new ways to use donated human tissue to treat a host of medical conditions.
Registered donors and their families donate this allograft tissue in the same way organs are donated. It is used in many life-saving and enhancing medical procedures already, with numerous new opportunities on the horizon.
The following byline from AlloSource has appeared in hundreds of media outlets around the country
Newsfeed