A contentious stem cell surgery is reportedly helping a New Zealand woman with motor neuron disease regain function.
Sixty four-year-old Willie Terpstra was diagnosed with motor neuron disease about a year ago.
The disease was progressively affecting her ability to perform daily activities such as eating and walking.
In a bid to maintain function, Terpstra sought a treatment in China in which stem cells from aborted fetuses were inserted into her brain through holes in her skull.
The surgery is banned in New Zealand.
On a blog updated by her family, Terpstra has written that her bandages have now been removed and she is now walking around with “two little holes with just a sticky plaster.” So far, she says, “I have no side-effects, no headache or anything else.”
Terpstra’s daughter Ren and husband Rein say they’ve already noticed improvements, such as improvements in drinking.
Terpstra is scheduled to spend two more weeks in a Beijing hospital before returning to New Zealand.
