Cutting-edge medical research from Ottawa suggests heart damage can be repaired by using a drug that triggers the production of stem cells. Until now, Neupogen 5 has only been used to treat cancer.

The research team from the the University of Ottawa Heart Institute presented their results to the American Heart Association in Florida on Tuesday.

The doctors began their trial by asking Charles Biscope to become the first person in the world to try their approach. Initially, each patient was given a week's worth of Neupogen 5 injections.

Heart attacks happen with alarming frequency in Canada. About 40 per cent of heart patients are left with lasting damage and chunks of heart muscle that can no longer pump blood through the body.

Biscope recalls that his heat attack hit with stunning pain and left three quarters of his heart muscle damaged. In addition, one of his arteries was 90 per cent blocked.

"When you find out you only have about 25 per cent of your heart muscle...I think you'll try just about anything to improve that," Biscope told CTV News.

Dr. Chris Glover said Neupogen 5 triggers the body to produce more stem cells that help repair the immune system after chemotherapy.

But when injected into heart attack patients, the flood of new stem cells circulate through the blood and into the heart. Doctors believe the cells help the heart heal itself by either turning into new heart muscle tissue or new blood vessels.

"All of the five patients we've treated are doing extremely well and all are free of symptoms like chest pain and shortness of breath," Glover said.

Biscope survived his heart attack with just 25 per cent of his heart working. After the treatment, that figure jumped to 36 per cent and has now reached 46 per cent.

"I can see the difference, my family sees the difference," Biscope said.

Japanese scientists have duplicated the results in their research. Still, it is not known how much of the change is due to stem cell therapy or other factors such as lifestyle changes and natural recovery. Much larger studies are now being planned.

Doctors once thought the only way to get stem cells into the heart was to remove them surgically from the bone marrow and inject them directly into the heart. The invasive procedure carries several dangers.

The Canadian researchers say their treatment can safely be carried out by virtually any health professional in any sized hospital.

At this point, they suspect the injections need to happen quickly -- about four to nine days after a heart attack.

"That's when all the cells die off and that's when you need to go in and replace the cells in order to save the heart," Dr. Peter Liu of the Heart and Stroke Foundation said.

Their findings were presented on a day when a long-term study from Alberta suggested that heart attacks take a higher toll on women under the age of 65.

The University of Alberta research team examined the records of more than 30,000 heart patients over a five-year period. The study found women who suffered from acute heart attacks fared worse than men -- especially women under 65.

Based on a report by Avis Favaro