What Is Regenerative Medicine and Is It the Future of Healing?

One of the biggest trends in the medical industry is regenerative medicine.

The incredible benefits and industry transformations promised by regenerative medicine are certainly attractive to hear. But what is regenerative medicine exactly and how does it work?

In this article, we’ll make an attempt to answer those questions. You’ll have a much better appreciation for this particular technology that’s making massive waves in the industry.

What Is Regenerative Medicine?

Like the name suggests, regenerative medicine is all about the regrowth of parts of your body that are either diseased, removed, or defunct.

For instance, think of a starfish. No doubt that when you were in grade school, you learned that a starfish has the capacity to regrow its limbs when one is cut off. The concept behind regenerative medicine is similar: it’s all about the regrowth of crucial clumps of cells that make up the human body.

However, regenerative medicine is nowhere near the point where external limbs and the like can be regrown. Instead, regenerative medicine right now focuses on internal organs and tissues. For instance, someone with a diseased liver who needs to have a portion of the liver removed could use regenerative medicine services to regrow part of that organ.

How Does Regenerative Medicine Work?

So how does the tremendous capacity of regenerative medicines work? 

To understand the answer to that question, we first have to understand how cells work. Each of the cells in your body accomplishes a unique function.

For instance, the cells in your skin make up your epidermis. The purpose of these cells is to regulate body temperature and provide an outer layer to your body that protects your internal skin. The important concept to take away here is that each type of cell has a function.

In your body, there is a specific kind of cell called a stem cell. The unique function of a stem cell is to grow other cells. So those skin cells that we talked about earlier are grown through stem cells.

The way that regenerative therapies work is by relocating stem cells to certain parts of the body that need regrowth in order to induce regrowth of those particular cells. 

Let’s continue the example we discussed above of the diseased liver that had to be partially removed. The introduction of stem cells in the right spot can regrow the cells that accomplish the liver function. With enough time and the right conditions, enough cells can be grown to create the tissue that makes up that portion of this crucial bodily organ.

Is Rengerative Medicine the Future of the Medical Industry?

Now that you know the answer to the question of what is regenerative medicine, you should have a good understanding of how it will impact the medical industry. There’s no doubt that the future of medical technology is enabling the regrowth of cells in order to restore lost motor and bodily functions.

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