Treatment of radiculomyelopathy in two patients with placenta-derived decidua stromal cells

Mesenchymal stromal cells may reverse acute inflammatory disorders. The placenta is important in feto-maternal tolerance. We have used placenta-derived decidua stromal cells (DSCs) to treat graft-versus-host disease and found an immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effect. We here report the use of DSCs in two patients with radiculomyelopathy. The first patient was a 73-year old man treated with parotidectomy and irradiation for lymphoma of the neck. Following a Yersinia infection, he developed a radiculomyelopathy in C3/C4 and could not elevate his arms. The second patient was a 34-year old woman who was admitted 8 months after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation due to hemolysis, impaired sensorium below arcus, and difficulty in ambulation. Following intravenous infusion of DSCs (1 x 10(6)/kg/infusion), the first patient could elevate his arms to the facial level. He experienced recurrent paralysis after 6 months, and the efficacy of four additional DSC infusions, at subsequent occasions, were limited and transient. The second patient was treated with two doses of DSCs (1 x 10(6)/kg/infusion). After cell infusion, she was able to stand on one leg, sensation in the belly normalized, and she was discharged. These two cases suggest that DSCs may be useful in the treatment of neuroinflammatory disorders.