About Summit

Our mission:

Summit for Stem Cell Foundation’s mission is to support, educate and raise awareness about the development of today’s and tomorrow’s evidence-based regenerative medical therapies focused on Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. It is our goal to empower patients and physicians with information to elevate their understanding in order to manage their care.

Our vision:

Summit for Stem Cell Foundation’s vision is a world where regenerative medicine is fully integrated into mainstream healthcare for persons with Parkinson’s disease and other neurological conditions as a treatment option.

The Stats:

  • Today, neurological disorders affect 1 billion worldwide. The fastest growing population is Parkinson’s disease (PD). The latest estimated statistics:

  • 1 million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with PD.
  • 90,000 new cases are diagnosed annually in the U.S. alone.
  • Approximately 10 million people have the disease worldwide today.
  • Current trends  indicate that by 2030  PD could:
    • outpace Alzheimer’s Disease and become the leading neurodegenerative disease.
    • grow to 30 million diagnosed cases.
  • 20% are diagnosed before age 40. (Young onset Parkinson’s disease.)
  •  Highest percentage diagnosed are male age 50-80.
  • The CAUSE is unknown. There is NO CURE.
  • There is one certainty for patients with PD: It always gets worse.
  •                                              These statistics need to change.

Summit for Stem Cell Foundation History:

Launching a novel therapy

Summit for Stem Cell Foundation (Summit) began as a small group of people with Parkinson’s disease, advocates, friends and families who were seeking knowledge about new therapies for alleviating the symptoms of their disease. (see volunteers left)

Presentation in the Loring Lab

induced pluripotent stem cell colony

Ten years ago the foundation found Dr. Jeanne Loring (at Scripps Research Institute) is a world renown pioneer in the field of human stem cell research. After attending a presentation at Dr. Loring’s lab, the group began fundraising to support a PD project in her lab. (see above right). With the funds raised by the foundation, Dr. Loring’s lab launched a research project that made use of her lab’s ability to produce induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC’s) from skin cells; these cells have the same abilities as stem cells obtained from embryos produced in IVF clinics: They can live forever and generate any cell type in the body. The most unique attribute iPSC’s posses is they are autologous. The iPSC’s, being sourced from the patient’s skin cells, match the DNA of the patient! (see left and below right)

The lab-initiated the development of an autologous dopamine neuron replacement therapy, using a person’s own skin cell-derived pluripotent stem cells to make dopamine neurons intended to use for transplantation to replace the neurons that die in PD. The figure on the right is an overview of the planned therapy, with the genomic analysis techniques that will ensure the safety and effectiveness of the cell replacement therapy.

Cycle to create  iPSC’s and eventually, autologous dopamine neurons

THE LATEST UPDATE: The Wall Street Journal (03/23/23)

“The Personalized Stem Cells That Could One Day Treat Parkinson’s and Heart Failure
Scientists are reverse-engineering patients’ own skin or blood cells to behave similarly to embryonic cell and using them in tests to treat incurable diseases…”

Click PHOTO to access article

“…Awaiting approval from the Food and Drug Administration, the company (Aspen Neuroscience, Inc.) aims to begin tests with some of those participants this year, with the results expected in about three years…”

Having completed their original mission supporting a cell-based treatment addressing the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD), Summit now turns it’s focus on people with PD.
The Foundation is now raising funds for The Capital Campaign for The Center for Parkinson’s Health and Wellness. With programs designed by leading experts in medicine and science (research), the Center will offer help in every aspect of PD including education, mental, physical, and emotional needs. 

We plan to include a strong research component keeping visitors informed on scientific advances. Whether newly diagnosed or progressing PD or a caregiver, the Center will be a place they can turn to for help, and their caregivers can turn to for empowerment to live their best lives with the disease. 

Through education, we intend to empower people with the ability to separate fact from fiction and the tools to live the best life possible with PD. scientific experts who can keep people abreast of scientific progress toward clinical trials.  The Center team will serve as guides to understanding the disease and how to live with it. We will also connect people so they can learn from and help each other. The development of the Summit Center for Parkinson’s Health and Wellness funding is ongoing, and Summit is seeking philanthropic and donors so we can open our doors  as soon as possible. 

The Center for Parkinson's Health and Wellness

HELPING understand what Parkinson’s is.

TEACHING how to manage Parkinson’s.

EMPOWERING with the skills and resources to live the best life with the disease.

A bit more about Summit today...

Sadly, the treatments and medications effectiveness currently in use is finite for Parkinson’s disease.

Summit believes the acquiescence of symptomatic treatments and rescue medicines for a life-altering ailments such as Parkinson’s disease is unacceptable.

Summit believes that regenerative medicine has the strongest potential to provide precision medical treatments to address illnesses and conditions affecting the nervous system. We feel that once Parkinson’s disease is adequately addressed by a cell therapy such as Dr. Loring’s (managed by Aspen Neuroscience), the “doors will open wide” for other conditions with unmet medical needs.

Summit, dares to continue to look outside the box at new and innovative research.

Summit continues its maverick approach looking for the answers to long-standing questions of:

“What is the CAUSE of Parkinson’s?”

and

“What is the CURE for Parkinson’s disease?”