A hole in the airway that won’t heal is now being sealed with a patch made from the patient’s own stem cells and donated human tissue. This matters because bronchopleural fistula—a rare but often fatal complication of lung surgery—currently has no reliable, standardised cure. Patients face multiple operations, long hospital stays, and life-threatening chest infections. The problem is that existing treatments fail to permanently close the abnormal hole between the airway and chest cavity. The research team is testing a tissue-engineered patch in a first-in-human trial with five patients. Donated airway tissue is stripped of its original cells using Videregen’s technology, then reseeded with stem cells grown from the patient’s own bone marrow. The patch is surgically placed over the fistula, where it should encourage new blood vessel growth and tissue regeneration, sealing the hole permanently. If successful, this could replace repeated surgeries with a single, curative procedure. Beyond BPF, the same approach might eventually be adapted for other conditions where organ or tissue replacement options are scarce—such as damaged tracheas or other hollow organs.
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"A bronchopleural fistula (BPF) is an abnormal hole between the airway (bronchus or trachea) and the chest cavity When a BPF develops, air that is breathed can travel through the abnormal hole and enter the chest cavity, which can result in life threatening infection. BPF is a rare but potentially fatal complication of lung surgery with high death rates. It occurs particularly after removal of a lung for lung cancer or sometimes after lung transplantation. Treatment often requires multiple surgeries, long hospital stays and a major impact on quality of life. Despite improvements in surgical techniques and advances in treatment options, a standardised and reliable treatment option is still lacking. This project aims to test a new, potentially curative treatment for patients suffering with BPF, through use of a tissue-engineered patch, seeded with the patient's own stem cells (which are grown from their bone marrow), to seal the hole. If successful, this will allow permanent healing of the fistula and more rapid recovery of the patient. Studies have shown that tissue scaffolds and stem cells can aid in the healing process, encourage revascularisation reducing the inflammatory response, and so improve regeneration of the tissue. Donated human airway tissue will be processed using Videregen's proprietary technology to remove cells and cellular remnants. The patient's own stem cells will then be used to reseed the airway tissue scaffold, a portion of which (a patch) can then be used to close the hole in the airway of the patient. This project will complete an initial clinical trial in 5 patients to evaluate the safety and initial effectiveness of a tissue-engineered stem cell seeded patch, generating data to support progression to a larger clinical trial to further test the efficacy of the tissue engineered medicinal product. Ultimately, has the potential to provide a curative treatment for patients suffering from this severely debilitating condition and provide support to expand the technology to other serious conditions, where organ replacement options are lacking or in short supply."
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