Journal Article

Acceptability of neural stem cell therapy for cerebral palsy: survey of the Australian cerebral palsy community

Miller, Suzanne L., Webb, Annabel, Jenkin, Graham, Paton, Madison Claire Badawy, Finch-Edmondson, Megan, Fahey, Michael C., McDonald, Courtney A., Smith, Madeleine J.

2023

Overview

Background Neural stem cells (NSCs) have the potential to engraft and replace damaged brain tissue, repairing the damaged neonatal brain that causes cerebral palsy (CP). There are procedures that could increase engraftment of NSCs and may be critical for efficacy, but hold notable risks. Before clinical trials progress, it is important to engage with the CP community to understand their opinions. The aim of this study was to determine the acceptability of NSC therapy for CP in the CP community. Methods Australian residents with CP and parents/carers of those with CP completed a questionnaire to determine their willingness to use NSCs from three sources (fetal, embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells) and their willingness to undergo accompanying procedures (neurosurgery, immunosuppression) that carry potential risks. To further explore their views, participants also answered free text questions about their ethical concerns regarding the source of NSCs and their perceptions of meaningful outcomes following NSC treatment. Results In total, 232 responses were analyzed. Participants were willing to use NSCs from all three cell sources and were willing to undergo NSC therapy despite the need for neurosurgery and immunosuppression. Participants identified a range of outcome domains considered important following NSC treatment including gross motor function, quality of life, independence and cognitive function. Conclusions Hypothetical NSC therapy was acceptable to the Australian CP community. This study has identified important findings from the CP community which can be used to inform future NSC research, including the design of clinical trials which may help to increase recruitment, compliance and participant satisfaction.

• Publisher: BioMed Central,BioMed Central Ltd,Springer Nature B.V,BMC
• Subject: Australia / Biomedical and Life Sciences / Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering / Brain / Brain injury / Brain research / Care and treatment / Cell Biology / Cell Differentiation / Cell therapy / Cerebral palsy / Cerebral Palsy - therapy / Clinical trials / Cognitive ability / Demographics / Embryo cells / Ethics / Feedback / Fetuses / Humans / Immunosuppression / Immunotherapy / Infant, Newborn / Injuries / Life Sciences / Medical research / Neonates / Nervous system / Neural stem cells / Neural Stem Cells - transplantation / Neurosurgery / Paralysis / Parents & parenting / Pediatric neurology / Pluripotency / Quality of Life / Questionnaires / Regenerative Medicine/Tissue Engineering / Regression analysis / Stakeholder engagement / Stem cell research / Stem Cells / Surgery / Surveys / Surveys and Questionnaires / Transplantation / Traumatic brain injury