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Frequently Asked Questions

What are the payment methods?

We accept payment via wire transfer as well as Visa, MasterCardand American Express credit cards. We do not accept cash payments. Credit card payments may incur transaction and currency conversion fees.

Do you provide financing if I can't pay for the entire treatment right now?

Yes. We require at least 60% of the treatment to be paid upfront (including the deposit) and the remaining amount can be financed with a 5% interest for up to 12 months. If you would like to explore this option, simply let our team  know once you have completed our free evaluation process and are ready to proceed with our therapy.

Does insurance cover this treatment?

As of 2017, we do not know of any insurance company which covers - partially or totally - our therapy. However, we are happy to fill any paperwork and provide you with itemized receipts for each part of our process if you wish to submit for reimbursement. What we will not do is lie or misrepresent the kind of therapy provided by our clinic.

Do I need to pay in full before getting the treatment?

Given our limited space, we ask for a deposit to secure a treatment date. The remainder of the balance is required two weeks prior to the chosen treatment date. Both the deposit AND the balance are refundable prior to the start of treatment (fees may apply).
If you would prefer to pay the balance once you are at the clinic, you may do so as well. Simply communicate this to our team after you secure your treatment date. Be advised that this option carries an additional transaction fee.

Why is the clinic located in Cancun?

Current FDA guidelines prevent autologous stem cell therapies like ours to be carried out insidethe United States. Our group does most of our pre-clinical research in Yorba Linda, California but conduct the clinical side outside of the United States.

We're getting ready to visit you in Cancun. Is there a place where I can find organic and gluten-free products or should I bring my own?

Absolutely. Also, once you decide that our therapy is the best alternative for your child, our Patient Experience Team will be in touch with you throughout your planning. They can help you choose the best flights, book your hotel and provide answers to specific questions about food and everything else about your visit that's not directly related to the treatment.

I saved my son's umbilical cord, can we use it for the treatment?

In short, yes. But the question is, why would you want to do that? Getting cryopreserved cells out of storage, packaged, and shipped internationally involves several links in a chain that is mostly out of our control. It also involves several different companies (the one storing the cells, the one picking them up, the importing agency, the shipping company, the one doing the pickup in Cancun, and the transporting to our clinic) which complicates matters. W understand that most parents would want to "take advantage" of an investment they made for their child's health but I normally recommend they continue storing those cells and allow us to harvest healthy (and fresh) stem cells from their children. And no, the cells of patients with autism are not "damaged". Keep in mind that children with autism are, more often than not, otherwise healthy. Meaning they grow, physically mature, and heal when they get hurt which tell us that their stem cells are alive and well.

Why is the therapy 5 days?

Our Advanced Stem Cell Therapy involves much more than what other "clinics" refer to as stem cell therapy. For us, the stem cell component is only part of our entire approach. In order for our team to be able to provide the life-changing results that our patients normally experience, we require more than a day or two.

Do I need to stop the supplements before the treatment?

There is no need to stop any supplements, medication or interventions prescribed by your doctor prior to stem cell therapy.

Do you use anesthesia?

Our anesthesiologist employs a technique called inhalatory sedation in order for our team to perform both the bone marrow aspirate and the intrathecal infusion. This technique puts the patient to sleep during the whole process but allows them to wake up fully a few minutes after the gas is withdrawn. It does not cause grogginess and does not affect patients like nitrous oxide or general anesthesia does.

Why do you do a lumbar puncture?

The central nervous system is shielded from the general circulation by a filter called the blood-brain barrier. This structure filters the contents of the blood so that only certain nutrients and molecules are allowed to enter the brain. While this is a very valuable function for survival, it also prevents larger molecules and cells such as stem cells from reaching the brain, brainstem and spine which is why lesions in the CNS are not easily repaired.
Our Advnaced Stem Cell Therapy has evolved over the past 6 years into a five-day process which includes two IV infusions, one intrathecal infusion (which is the correct name for the kind of infusion we do via a lumbar puncture) and several other components which take place before and after the stem cell component of our therapy. As you may now understand, the intrathecal infusion is necessary in order to get significant amounts of viable stem cells into the cerebrospinal fluid so they can reach and recognize damaged tissue which can be repaired.

How many cells will my child receive?

Our previous answer to this question was: as many as we harvest. However, we now have the ability to cryopreserve a patient's harvested stem cells. This means that if a new treatment was requested, we would not have to do a new bone marrow aspirate in order to get cells. We'd simply expand them (a process done in our labs to exponentially increase the number of cells we have available). This means that if our patients chose to cryopreserve a sample, they'd get about 90% of the cells we harvest on the same go. While this number varies, our patients normally receive well over 750 million cells in total (several patients have received more than twice this amount) when we consider both IVs and the intrathecal infusion.

How many patients with autism have you treated?

How many patients with autism have you treated?
Our team has provided over 400 treatments, following our proprietary protocol (including intrathecal infusions), to more than 320 patients.

If it is not FDA approved, how come you can perform this treatment?

While our group’s pre-clinical research is done in our lab in Yorba Linda, California, our treatment center is not in the United States. This means that the treatments we provide are not regulated by the FDA. We do however, have all the permits and licenses required by local authorities to perform every part of our therapy.

Will the results be permanent?

Yes. Unlike neurodegenerative conditions which continue to progress after stem celltherapy (think Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer's, etc.), Autism does not. Which means that as long as new toxic and or proinflammatory insults are avoided there is no reason to lose  the progress achieved from stem cell therapy.

Will the treatment work in adults with autism?

Yes. We have treated patients as old as 32. The post-treatment instructions are different but the rest of the process is remarkably similar. In any case, our physicians always spend time viaphone or videoconference with the parents or responsible party before accepting a patient so we are all aware of the risks, expectations and potential for improvement.

What are the common results you’ve seen after the treatment?

It’s very difficult to cite specific improvements since each patient is different from the next. What we do consistently see is that the patients are able to reach their next developmental milestones much quicker after stem cell therapy than previously without. Even in cases where patients had been stuck in particular stage. We have observed this with patients who were non-verbal and start speaking; patients who only had single-word communication, start speaking two or three-word sentences; patients who were not potty-trained, start responding to training; patients who had no eye-contact, start making eye-contact, etcetera. It should be noted though, that there is no way to tell which area a patient will improve in prior to the treatment.

What are the risks of the treatment?

The risks associated to the kind of stem cell therapy we provide are directly associated to each medical component of our five day process. Which include the following:
Blood Draws: You can expect the normal risks from any sort of blood draw such as bruising and tenderness. In  very rare cases, there may be swelling or localized infection.
Bone Marrow Aspirate: All our patients got through this procedure under inhalatory sedation using sevoflurane. Our patients normally experience some degree of tenderness that is not dangerous nor disabling. In some cases there may be bruising of the puncture site. It is possible to cause an infection however, it has never occurred at our clinic. All of our aspirates are performed in an OR by a hematologist and under inhalatory sedation provided by a pediatric anesthesiologist both of whom are MDs with several thousand patients treated. We never use Nitrous oxide for sedation, due to its known severe side effects with autistic patients.
IV reinfusions: Just like with the blood draws, you could expect some bruising and tenderness at the site of the IV.
Intrathecal reinfusion: As with the rest of the items on this list, all our patients got through this procedure under inhalatory sedation using sevoflurane, patients may experience tenderness at the puncture sites. In rare cases, there may be redness or localized infection. While our patients have never experienced any of these, other side effects associated with a lumber puncture are: headaches, dizziness, and vertigo.

What are the common results you’ve seen after the treatment?

It’s very difficult to cite specific improvements since each patient is different from the next. What we do consistently see is that the patients are able to reach their next developmental milestones much quicker after stem cell therapy than previously without. Even in cases where patients had been stuck in particular stage. We have observed this with patients who were non-verbal and start speaking; patients who only had single-word communication, start speaking two or three-word sentences; patients who were not potty-trained, start responding to training; patients who had no eye-contact, start making eye-contact, etcetera. It should be noted though, that there is no way to tell which area a patient will improve in prior to the treatment.

Each individual with autism is unique, how do you know this will work on my child?

We don't. At least not right off the bat. That's why every patient has to undergo our patient evaluation process. This is a free process which includes an online intake form that is reviewed by our Medical Team. If they all think that a patient is a suitable candidate with a realistic chance of improvement, you will be contacted to set up a phone or video conference with one of our physicians. This serves you to clear any additional questions and it serves us to evaluate your expectations and delve a bit deeper into your son's or daughter's medical history. After this step we normally have a very precise idea as to whether your child will benefit from stem cell therapy and will only accept patients whom we believe can benefit. Which brings us to our Improvement Guarantee.

What is your Improvement Guarantee?

While we can't possibly guarantee any specific gains, we don’t want you to the risk of going through our process and not seeing any gains away from you. During your conversation with our physicians, they will share with you the areas in which we will evaluate your child's progress. Once you are here, on the first day of our treatment, we will record the baselines of each of these areas. And throughout the next eight months, we will conduct virtual followup appointments with you to make sure that your child is experiencing benefits as well as to guide you through our specific recommendations for each stage after treatment. If after completing this followup, and  if you have followed our recommendations and continued care with your child's practitioner, your child has not improved in any area we discussed during our initial interviews, we will provide a new stem cell treatment completely free of charge. All you pay for is your and your child's airfare, lodging and meals during the treatment.

Do you have any other question? Contact us now and get your doubt cleared. Or

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Our Promise To You

If your child doesn't benefit, in any area at all, from the therapy in the first time, we'll perform the treatment again for FREE!

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