Umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells in treating a critically ill COVID-19 patient

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is spreading rapidly. Critically ill cases of COVID-19 can rapidly progress to acute respiratory distress syndrome and multiple organ failures. However, no effective drugs have been available till now, leading to more than 300,000 deaths up to 29 April 2020. Here, we present a critically ill case utilizing umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UCB-MSCs).

A 72-year-old man was admitted, with the diagnosis of COVID-19, ARDS, type-2 diabetes, diabetic nephropathy, renal insufficiency, and hypertension. His clinical condition continually developed to be life-threatening even receiving various treatment options including antiviral therapy and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Between 28 February and 8 March 2020, the patient was given 5-time intravenous infusions of UCB-MSCs. His hematological and biochemical indexes, including lymphocytes and renal function improved. Pulmonary static compliance increased significantly and PaO2/FiO2 ratio maintained stable. On March 10, he received lung transplantation.

Our current findings suggested that UCB-MSCs therapy may show some positive effect in treating critical COVID-19 to some extent, for its delaying deterioration of the disease and efficacy in respiratory and renal function, though limited.