For some reason Foregen hasn’t been given the best chance in the restoring community and I am starting this post to hopefully change that.
I already posted this in restoringforeskin.org
The most common concerns and questions the community has are the following:
1. Will all of the components of the foreskin be regenerated: the Frenar Band, the Frenulum, and all the nerve cells, or in other words will the penis be as if it was intact?
Yes everything is anticipated to be regenerated, Foregen is going to use ECMs, or Extracellular matrix, to regenerate the foreskin. ECM is kind of like the blueprint, or scaffold of the skin, and it will show the stem cells what to become and where; With that, there will be no complications, the foreskin will be regenerated as it should have been.
2. Will the procedure be available soon?
Foregen is planning on holding their clinical trials in 2019. Making the procedure available to the public will take around a year after that. Recently, there has been a significant increase in donations, an increase of $1750 monthly in only 10 weeks, they are projected to be fully funded by the end of 2016 and start research full time; Foregen may reach their goal a lot sooner, especially if we can continue to grow with the help of anyone who wants this to become a reality.
3. What have they succeeded in doing and what is left to do?
Before going over what they did, let me tell you about all the steps that are needed for the procedure to become commercially ready.
1. Decellularize animal foreskin tissue.
2. Decellularize human foreskin tissue.
3. Seed the human foreskin with stem cells from a pig (because the pig has a very similar ECM to our’s). Then the foreskin will be implemented on a pig’s penis (This is only a test, your own stem cells will be used for the procedure)
4. Seed human tissue with stem cells and regenerate the foreskin (which is part of clinical trials) and implant the new foreskin onto the patient’s penis.
Foregen has been successful in decellularizing animal foreskin tissue (bull foreskin) and recently they started working on decellularizing donated human foreskin tissue and the results should come out before the end of 2016, which they will publish and get a patent for. After that, there’s only one more experiment left until the clinical trials start.
4. What if I am restoring, will that affect the procedure? (Do I need to wait?)
Before I answer this question, there is no need to wait at all, I am restoring and will continue to restore. Now to answer the question, restoring shouldn’t affect the procedure much; I am saying “shouldn’t” because with their current research it’s hard to know yet, but it’s unlikely to cause any huge problem; in worst case scenario they just have to remove the excess tissue and add the regenerated tissue right after.
5. Let’s say it’s successful, will I be able to pay for it?
Although, Foregen hasn’t been able to set a price on the procedure since it’s still in development, they have stated that payment plans will be available for everyone who wants to have it done. You won’t need to have all of the money upfront to pay for the procedure. Also, in one of their recent blog posts, their spokesman Eric Clopper mentioned that they are working on a way of repaying those who have donated to Foregen.
6. Is there proof for what Foregen can do?
The field of regenerative medicine has already yielded significant success, and the technology needed for Foregen to succeed largely exists - it simply needs to be translated to Foregen’s specific needs. Regenerative medicine has been successful in regenerating fully functional skin tissue, full organs, and even partial hearts. You can learn more about the field and find more on The Science of Regeneration - Foregen
7. How will the regenerated foreskin be connected to the penis and how will the nerve endings be connected to the Central nervous system?
The regenerated foreskin has been said to be connected to the penis via a microsurgery. The circumcision scar line will need to be reopened and the microsurgery will be performed to reconnect the inner and outer foreskins as well as the blood veins. Luckily, all this stuff is very superficial, meaning it is at the surface of the penis, because penile skin is very mobile. We believe stem cells will be injected at the site of the incision to inhibit scarring and help the body to heal. The nerve ending reconnection will be the biggest challenge no doubt, but Foregen’s lead scientists wouldn’t have had left their jobs to work on this project if they did not believe it was possible. Great success has been demonstrated with a Schwann cell technique that teases nerve axons to regrow in an organized fashion. You can see the full video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tly--DVwC0. In this case, the sciatic nerve has been regenerated. It is very possible that Foregen may be using this Schwann cell technique to regenerate the nerve endings in the foreskin as well.
8. Is there a major risk from the procedure?
As with any surgery, there are always possible risks. If you happen to be selected for a clinical trial, you will be notified of all the possible risks associated with the surgery. If you do not want to, you are by no means required to participate in the trial and you can back down at any time. After the procedure is perfected in the human clinical trials. The risks are superficial and will not cause any lasting damage and should be likened to the risk factor that any other surgery carries with it. The risks are very likely to be minimal, and probably wouldn’t cause any major damage.
If you have any other question, ask away.
I already posted this in restoringforeskin.org
The most common concerns and questions the community has are the following:
1. Will all of the components of the foreskin be regenerated: the Frenar Band, the Frenulum, and all the nerve cells, or in other words will the penis be as if it was intact?
Yes everything is anticipated to be regenerated, Foregen is going to use ECMs, or Extracellular matrix, to regenerate the foreskin. ECM is kind of like the blueprint, or scaffold of the skin, and it will show the stem cells what to become and where; With that, there will be no complications, the foreskin will be regenerated as it should have been.
2. Will the procedure be available soon?
Foregen is planning on holding their clinical trials in 2019. Making the procedure available to the public will take around a year after that. Recently, there has been a significant increase in donations, an increase of $1750 monthly in only 10 weeks, they are projected to be fully funded by the end of 2016 and start research full time; Foregen may reach their goal a lot sooner, especially if we can continue to grow with the help of anyone who wants this to become a reality.
3. What have they succeeded in doing and what is left to do?
Before going over what they did, let me tell you about all the steps that are needed for the procedure to become commercially ready.
1. Decellularize animal foreskin tissue.
2. Decellularize human foreskin tissue.
3. Seed the human foreskin with stem cells from a pig (because the pig has a very similar ECM to our’s). Then the foreskin will be implemented on a pig’s penis (This is only a test, your own stem cells will be used for the procedure)
4. Seed human tissue with stem cells and regenerate the foreskin (which is part of clinical trials) and implant the new foreskin onto the patient’s penis.
Foregen has been successful in decellularizing animal foreskin tissue (bull foreskin) and recently they started working on decellularizing donated human foreskin tissue and the results should come out before the end of 2016, which they will publish and get a patent for. After that, there’s only one more experiment left until the clinical trials start.
4. What if I am restoring, will that affect the procedure? (Do I need to wait?)
Before I answer this question, there is no need to wait at all, I am restoring and will continue to restore. Now to answer the question, restoring shouldn’t affect the procedure much; I am saying “shouldn’t” because with their current research it’s hard to know yet, but it’s unlikely to cause any huge problem; in worst case scenario they just have to remove the excess tissue and add the regenerated tissue right after.
5. Let’s say it’s successful, will I be able to pay for it?
Although, Foregen hasn’t been able to set a price on the procedure since it’s still in development, they have stated that payment plans will be available for everyone who wants to have it done. You won’t need to have all of the money upfront to pay for the procedure. Also, in one of their recent blog posts, their spokesman Eric Clopper mentioned that they are working on a way of repaying those who have donated to Foregen.
6. Is there proof for what Foregen can do?
The field of regenerative medicine has already yielded significant success, and the technology needed for Foregen to succeed largely exists - it simply needs to be translated to Foregen’s specific needs. Regenerative medicine has been successful in regenerating fully functional skin tissue, full organs, and even partial hearts. You can learn more about the field and find more on The Science of Regeneration - Foregen
7. How will the regenerated foreskin be connected to the penis and how will the nerve endings be connected to the Central nervous system?
The regenerated foreskin has been said to be connected to the penis via a microsurgery. The circumcision scar line will need to be reopened and the microsurgery will be performed to reconnect the inner and outer foreskins as well as the blood veins. Luckily, all this stuff is very superficial, meaning it is at the surface of the penis, because penile skin is very mobile. We believe stem cells will be injected at the site of the incision to inhibit scarring and help the body to heal. The nerve ending reconnection will be the biggest challenge no doubt, but Foregen’s lead scientists wouldn’t have had left their jobs to work on this project if they did not believe it was possible. Great success has been demonstrated with a Schwann cell technique that teases nerve axons to regrow in an organized fashion. You can see the full video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tly--DVwC0. In this case, the sciatic nerve has been regenerated. It is very possible that Foregen may be using this Schwann cell technique to regenerate the nerve endings in the foreskin as well.
8. Is there a major risk from the procedure?
As with any surgery, there are always possible risks. If you happen to be selected for a clinical trial, you will be notified of all the possible risks associated with the surgery. If you do not want to, you are by no means required to participate in the trial and you can back down at any time. After the procedure is perfected in the human clinical trials. The risks are superficial and will not cause any lasting damage and should be likened to the risk factor that any other surgery carries with it. The risks are very likely to be minimal, and probably wouldn’t cause any major damage.
If you have any other question, ask away.
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