Stem Cell-based and Advanced Therapeutic Modalities for Parkinson’s Disease: A Risk-effectiveness Patient-centered Analysis

Abstract

Abstract: Treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD), the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, is currently considered a challenging issue since it causes substantial disability, poor quality of life, and mortality. Despite remarkable progress in advanced conventional therapeutic interventions,the global burden of the disease has nearly doubled, prompting us to assess the risk-effectiveness of different treatment modalities. Each protocol could be considered as the best alternative treatment depending on the patient’s situation. Prescription of Levodopa, the most effective available medicine for this disorder, has been associated with many complications, i.e., multiple episodes of "off-time", and treatment resistance. Other medications, which are typically used in combination with levodopa, may have several adverse effects as well. As a result, the therapies that are more in line with human physiology and make the least interference with other pathways are worth investigating. On the other hand, remaining and persistent symptoms after therapy and the lack of effective response to the conventional approaches have raised expectations towards innovative alternative approaches such as stem cell-based therapy. It is critical not to overlook the unexplored side effects of innovative approaches due to the limited number of research. In this review, we aimed to compare the efficacy and risk of advanced therapies with innovative cell-based and stem-cell-based modalities in PD patients. This paper recapitulated the underlying factors/conditions, which could lead us to more practical and established therapeutic outcomes with more advantages and few complications. It could be an initial step to reconsider the therapeutic blueprint for patients with Parkinson’s disease.