The year 2017 was characterized by many medical achievements for many diseases that are unable to solve them, such as Alzheimer's, tuberculosis, cancer, AIDS and others.
These are the most important medical achievements highlighted in the media in 2017.
• The first artificial uterus :
American scientists developed the first pouch-like uterus, mimicking the original functions of the uterus and placenta.
The uterus, filled with liquid material for premature infants, allows them to complete their growth in the lungs and other organs properly.
But the uterus, which was developed at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, United States, still needs about 10 years to be used in hospitals.
• A drug targeting Alzheimer's disease :
Researchers at Japan's Tohoku University are developing a drug that could become the first drug to treat Alzheimer's disease called SAK3.
The drug acts on the brain to stimulate the production of "acetylcholine," which has improved cognition and memory, and reduces levels of sticky plaques in the brain, the protein called "beta-amyloid," accumulates in the brain , decades before the onset of Alzheimer's symptoms.
• Clear painful memories :
Scientists at the University of Toronto in Canada have found a way to erase painful memories of human brains, which is good news for those who have suffered psychological trauma that is still in their minds.
Researchers have relied on excessive protein production in the brain, which triggers nerve cells that produce bad memories.
But British scientists warned that this involved moral complications, as it would prevent humans from learning from the mistakes they made.
•The first drug to treat skin cancer :
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved the first drug to treat adults and children over 12 years old with a rare type of skin cancer.
The new treatment is called Avelumab, which treats metastatic cancer of the skin, the most serious form of skin tumors, which also spreads under the skin.
• Artificial blood :
LONDON (Reuters) - British scientists have made significant progress in producing large quantities of artificial blood in the laboratory, raising hopes for many people who need blood from donors, especially those with rare blood groups.
At present, blood lab production depends on the use of a particular type of stem cells to produce red blood cells in the body and treat them to produce blood in the lab, but burn these stem cells before that it does not exceed what it produces 50 thousand red blood cells.
However, the new method, developed by researchers at the University of Bristol, UK, based on trapping the stem cell responsible for blood production and is at an early stage of growth and planted, to produce infinite stem cell numbers, which scientists say makes these cells "non-dead".