"Desperate Americans Go Abroad for Long Covid Cure

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He used to jog. But after contracting COVID-19 in March 2020, Eli Musser said he became so weak that he lost use of his legs. The 43-year-old former copywriter and musician added that he remained bed-bound, in a wheelchair, or else left to lay in a makeshift hammock in his Queens apartment until April 2021.

Nearly two years later, Musser said, he still has trouble walking. And jogging? A memory.

......Hope Biosciences CEO and Founder Donna Chang is studying stem cells on Long COVID patients in Houston through a randomized clinical trial. Eighty people will receive stem cells or a placebo to measure how effective and safe they are for long-haulers.

When asked if stem cells are more beneficial or detrimental to Long COVID patients, however, she said “it depends on the quality and what you’re getting.”

Chang added that any stem-cell therapy for Long COVID patients could backfire due to the group’s vulnerable immune systems, which, she said, could open them up to other viral infections.

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