Hair cloning (possible or pipe dream?)

[GTDL]

Here's something that I came across in the online Irish Independent archive. This is taken from an issue of the Irish Independent from last year. It seems a bit too good to be true (and as always, you can't believe everything you read or hear when it comes to hair restoration), that's why I would like to post it here and see what people think. I would be very interested to hear what some HT doctors themselves think about this piece. But all are welcome to comment and give their opinion. Here it is:

 

'Millions of men and women who suffer from premature baldness or hair loss could soon be able to regain their original lustrous locks -- by cloning their remaining hair in the laboratory.

 

The new technique, known as "follicular cell implantation", has already shown positive results in ongoing clinical trials on human beings.

 

The work, being carried out by a British team, is being hailed as a major advance in hair restoration and is backed by a ??1.9 million government grant.

 

The cell therapy has the potential to provide a limitless supply of an individual's hair to replace that lost due to burns, cancer treatment or simply the onset of age, and could be available to patients within five years.

 

The latest results of the Phase II trial, presented at a conference of leading hair replacement surgeons in Rome, suggest that the technique can increase hair count in at least two thirds of patients after six months, and four out of five if the scalp is stimulated beforehand through gentle abrasions that encourage hair growth.

 

The new technique involves extracting dermal papilla cells, the basic cells responsible for hair growth, from a sample of only about 100 hairs from the back of the scalp.

 

These cells are then multiplied many times over in a special patented culture, before being injected back into the scalp in their millions, stimulating the formation of new hair follicles or rejuvenating those that have stopped producing hair on the top of the head.

 

The procedure is being developed by Intercytex, a British company based in Manchester, which is among many competing to find a cure for hair loss that affects 40pc of men over 50.

 

It may require more than 1,000 tiny injections to produce that number of hairs in extensively bald patients but it will be quicker and less invasive than current hair transplant techniques favoured by celebrities including Sir Elton John and Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister.'

 

So there you have it. Possible or pipe dream?

[GTDL]

Here's something that I came across in the online Irish Independent archive. This is taken from an issue of the Irish Independent from last year. It seems a bit too good to be true (and as always, you can't believe everything you read or hear when it comes to hair restoration), that's why I would like to post it here and see what people think. I would be very interested to hear what some HT doctors themselves think about this piece. But all are welcome to comment and give their opinion. Here it is:

 

'Millions of men and women who suffer from premature baldness or hair loss could soon be able to regain their original lustrous locks -- by cloning their remaining hair in the laboratory.

 

The new technique, known as "follicular cell implantation", has already shown positive results in ongoing clinical trials on human beings.

 

The work, being carried out by a British team, is being hailed as a major advance in hair restoration and is backed by a ??1.9 million government grant.

 

The cell therapy has the potential to provide a limitless supply of an individual's hair to replace that lost due to burns, cancer treatment or simply the onset of age, and could be available to patients within five years.

 

The latest results of the Phase II trial, presented at a conference of leading hair replacement surgeons in Rome, suggest that the technique can increase hair count in at least two thirds of patients after six months, and four out of five if the scalp is stimulated beforehand through gentle abrasions that encourage hair growth.

 

The new technique involves extracting dermal papilla cells, the basic cells responsible for hair growth, from a sample of only about 100 hairs from the back of the scalp.

 

These cells are then multiplied many times over in a special patented culture, before being injected back into the scalp in their millions, stimulating the formation of new hair follicles or rejuvenating those that have stopped producing hair on the top of the head.

 

The procedure is being developed by Intercytex, a British company based in Manchester, which is among many competing to find a cure for hair loss that affects 40pc of men over 50.

 

It may require more than 1,000 tiny injections to produce that number of hairs in extensively bald patients but it will be quicker and less invasive than current hair transplant techniques favoured by celebrities including Sir Elton John and Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister.'

 

So there you have it. Possible or pipe dream?

[HairDew]

I read on Intercytex's website that Dr. Farjo's clinic is the one testing this product.

[imissthebarber]

GTDL this research has been going on for a while. Farjo are involved with Intercytex. Whilst it does sound exciting the possible availability within five years is just that a possibility. I think it is difficult for the layman or even someone not familiar with the exact research to say how likely this really is. It stands to reason that in a multi-billion dollar industry someone who finds a "cure" would stand to make a lot of money so there is plenty of incentive for people to research this.

 

In terms of what this means to someone now, if they are at an early stage when waiting for a HT might be advisable anyway then developments on this could come along to help out. However, for someone contemplating an aggressive surgery which would not leave enough donor hair to cover future hair loss it would be unwise to rely on cloning to make up the shortfall. Even if it does become available the chances are it will be very expensive to begin with as new things generally are.

 

Iintercytex are due to publish further more detailed findings after the end of Q1 2009. At the moment they are detailing an increase in hair count in the majority of patients based on a very small sample size.

 

Intercytex

[Bill - Seemiller]

GTDL,

 

I think this is a very real possibility however, I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

I think we are still several years away from hair multiplication becoming any real sort of solution.

 

But us balding men and women hope for it, since ultimately, it will provide an unlimited donor source.

 

See nore on "When Will Hair Cloning Become Available?"

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[Acrobaz]

This research is very exciting, and the day will certainly come. But even a single human hair has an enormously complex cell structure. I asked a genetic scientist friend of mine about this, and he thought that its use as a commercially viable procedure was at least a generation away.

 

My immediate thought was this: maybe this will be what my 8-year old son will do. I hope this procedure is available for him when, courtesy of his likely genetic inheritance, he one day walks down the same path of hair loss. I'll be very pleased for him, even as I sit in my knackered chair by the fire of the old folks' home, pretending I got that weird line on the back of my head when I was working as a covert operative in the Arctic tundra ...

[GTDL]

Thanks for your feedback lads, and thanks for that link Bill, was very informative. I did think that the article in The Irish Independent was being a bit over optimistic by claiming that hair cloning could be available within five years. Hence why I wanted to see what you guys thought. But I suppose it's good to have something to look forward to in the future, be it ever so far away.

[Dazed]

With Bush out of the way, who knows what scientific advances may be forthcoming.

[john2008]

My HT doctor is currently working on something with stem cells to do something similar to this. I will see if I can get a brochure or paper taht I can scan in and post as an attachment for everyone.

 

John

[CuriousJungleGeorge]

It sounds like a very nice idea, and I hope it comes through, but waiting with baited breath for an unlimited donor-supply seems unwise. It looks as if talk of this concept has been floating around for at least a decade (all right, maybe a little less than), and the "verdict" has consistently been, "It's probably at least ten years away." Even if Intercytex's method works out, I imagine it will be at least four or five years before a person can ask a hair-transplant surgeon to get some follicles cloned, and at that stage, doing so will likely be unaffordable for most persons (I suppose the charge to make one hundred follicles will be in the several-thousand-dollar range, plus the cost of surgery).

 

How bad does that "line" on the back of the head end up, anyway? Is it a raised scar, or a flat line? Is there anyway to minimize its occurrence? Thanks.

[calv]

IMO, this is decades away and can you imagine how much it will cost, i reckon at leat 10 grand

[cody]

It costs at least 10 grand for a regular ht..

[calv]

10 grand in pounds, 15000 dollars

[Mick from Farjo]

Spex,

You would not believe the number of people who actually believe it's going to be just round the corner.I tell them it's a very, very long corner.Anyway this was just updated on our site.

http://www.farjo.net/news.asp?action=view&id=657

Mick

[Ceasar08]

I hate to cast any pessimism onto the thread... but here's what I'll say...

 

I started losing my hair ten years ago. The first thing I read about cloning was that it is "5 years away." I then heard people complain that everyone said that "five years ago." So, the "five year" thing has been going on for a minimum of 15 years.

 

Some people think they came up with the number five because one year is clearly way too soon, while ten seems way too far. Five seems just close enough, yet far away enough to be possible.

 

Sorry if I brought anybody's spirit down. I'd be as thrilled to see it happen as anyone.

[celeb hair vet]

I spoke with one of the top five HT refined surgeons in the country regarding this.

 

He stated simply that it was most likely 8 to ten years away.

 

All the more reason to be conservative with your donor site as the technology advances.

[CuriousJungleGeorge]

The refrain to which I'm used is, "It must be maybe a decade away."

[latinlotus]

It is funny that we can clone a whole creature like a sheep, but can't clone a hair follicle. From what i have read, while the injected hair cells do grow, the whole difficulty is regarding how to control the direction of hair once it starts to grow.

 

I am certainly optimistic that it will be available in 5 years mainly because this generation of balding men are way more look conscious than the past generation. This means that the market is much bigger now than say in the 90's, which in turn the potential profit is much higher, thus more funding for research.

 

Also with the internet, there are more collaborative tools available for scientists around the world, helping them to more easily share ideas.

 

IMO, 'in the next 5 year' is equivalent now to perhaps 20-30 years to when someone mentioned this same sentence in year 2000.

[CuriousJungleGeorge]

As I understand it (which is not very well), the problem with getting "vellus" to grow into "real hair" is, indeed, of direction. But, if actual follicular units can be multiplied, the problem seems much less potent. Competent hair-transplant surgeons, nowadays, do seem able to position follicles so they grow very naturally and pleasingly. Give them a rich (i.e., unbounded) supply of units to transplant, and, bingo.

[TheEmperor]

I am sceptical of published results as there is incentive to make it appear that the research is progressing. They need investment money to keep things (like their paycheck) rolling.

[Dr. William Lindsey]

Pipe dream...in the short term.

 

Prior to actual clinical use, even if someone can do a perfect hair clone technique today, can you imagine the red tape that will be dealt with?

 

Even if scientists' cured cancer with a novel technique there would be huge hurdles to overcome.

 

I do think that hair cloning will come to fruition, just not in time for me; nor most of the bloggers on this site today. More likely our kids.

 

One of the consults that I met with in Utah last week asked me just this question. When I gave my answer, he asked if I felt that way as it may lower my income. My reply was no. First of all, I expect to be long retired before it is available...or dead. Second, even if you can clone 10,000 hairs, some doctor will have to design a hairline and oversee placement. Lastly, genetically I will wind up as class 6 more than likely, and just like many of you, I'd like to avoid that. If cloning was available at reasonable cost, with minimal risk; I would consider it for me.

 

Dr. Lindsey McLean VA

[mmhce]

Second, even if you can clone 10,000 hairs, some doctor will have to design a hairline and oversee placement.

 

Dr. Lindsey,

Thanks for your input.

 

Alot of people don't realize that there will still be a need of a trained medical practioner to implant the hair follicles.

[CuriousJungleGeorge]

Right, I think that's why there should be incentive to pursue the possibility. In a capitalist economy, if only profitable things are considered, fine (well, maybe, maybe not). With follicle-multiplication, transplant surgeons still do what they do (though less extraction, one imagines), and other people get to come in and charge for the multiplication.

[BALDIE42]

Mick from Farjo - Question for you.

 

Regarding your posting on Hair Cloning.I've been following ICX-TRC for quite a while now.What are you actually stating.Your posting was dated 26th March after their resent update.

 

Was the results that bad,as there as never been photos published.Are Aderans a better bet or Intercytex.All we seem to get is figures that most do not understand - why is this?

 

I had a very intesting conversation with Lesley for Farjo a quite a while ago.She answered the phone instead of receptionist I assume.She was very positive,perhaps she was to over positive.

 

Do not just tell us to check out FAQ page.

[Mick from Farjo]

BALDIE 42,

Unfortunately i am as much in the dark as you.Hence it is a topic that you will know as much as i do.I was simply referring to a recent update relating to the topic, which as you know has created a lot of interest.The reality is this is something that is not going to be available sometime soon.I will ask Dr Farjo to give some good straight talking feedback on this area and add it to here for you.

Mick