Human Bladders Grown in the Lab

Posted on April 6, 2006

The BBC reports that human bladders have been grown in the lab using cells from the patients.

US scientists have successfully implanted bladders grown in the laboratory from patients' own cells into people with bladder disease.
The researchers, from North Carolina's Wake Forest University, have carried out seven transplants, and in some the organ is working well years later.
The achievement, details of which have been published online by The Lancet, is being described as a "milestone".
The team is now working to grow organs including hearts using the technique.

The news was first reported in the Lancet. It is a promising technique that could be improve the quality of life for cancer patients. More long-term testing will be needed to make sure the bladders are safe. Let's hope the bladders are effective for long periods of time and that this same team can also learn to grow hearts and other organs.