Adelaide businessman Kevin Weeks to be treated with dopamine-producing stem cells in a world-first medical trial for Parkinson’s

A MONTH after ascending 17,000m through the breathtaking French and Swiss Alps, Kevin Weeks’ life went into a tailspin.

The builder and property developer had returned from the week-long cycling odyssey to celebrate a friend’s birthday and at 63, his health and fitness was excellent.
But dizziness and a mild tremor had him worried — then driving to work one day he felt his left hand pulsating on the steering wheel; he knew something was wrong and on October 24, 2013, his worst fears were confirmed.
“I’d had a suspicion I had early onset Parkinson’s and when my hands started pulsing on the steering wheel, that really knocked me,” he said.
He said five GPs told him he didn’t have Parkinson’s before a neurologist confirmed what he had suspected, which “put me into a tailspin”.
“For six weeks, I couldn’t get off the lounge at home,” he said.
“I’m a vibrant person that’s always been involved in some form of sport, I train regularly, eat the right food, don’t smoke, have a small amount of red wine, how could this happen?
“After laying on the lounge feeling sorry for myself for six weeks, not watching television, my wife was wonderful and very supportive, I had to get hold of myself.
“So I got back on the bike, I was just doing 30km rides to Outer Harbor and my son rang me and said ‘come on dad let’s do a ride up Norton Summit’.”
Treatment for the past three years has included taking a dopamine supplement but his symptoms have worsened slightly.

FULL OF HOPE: Kevin Weeks, with his wife Valda and son Matthew, at home. Picture: MATT TURNER

And now he has new hope, awaiting a phone call from Royal Melbourne Hospital that is set to change his life.

Mr Weeks, 66, is among a dozen patients chosen to be treated with dopamine-producing stem cells in a world-first medical trial, in the hope that it will stop the tremor in his left arm.
The first patient, a 64-year-old Victorian, is recovering from the recent eight-hour surgery and Mr Weeks, who is managing director of The Weeks Group, is the next patient scheduled to be injected with 30 million stem cells from International Stem Cell Corporation.
The neuroscientists hope the cells will become dopamine-producing neurons that help transmit signals from the brain to the muscle.
Risks of the operation include a stroke, blood clot and even death but Mr Weeks is confident it will be a success.
“They cut a hole in your head and inject 30 million neurons into various parts of the brain,” he said.
“The dopamine-producing neurons in my brain — 80 per cent of them have died. And when you get to 20 per cent left that’s when you show the signs of Parkinson’s.
Parkinson's Treatment: 10 Secrets to a Happier Life: English Edition
“It’s a risky operation but these guys know what they’re doing.
“The hope is it will take about 12 weeks to show positive benefit and anything up to two or three years to return to normal. The prospect of getting better and not worse is wonderful.
“Having Parkinson’s and knowing if you look at the long trajectory, people who have had it for 10-15 years, they can be immobilised, so the future isn’t very bright.
“So (the possibility) of this changing the symptoms, even if it doesn’t cure the disease, it just gives you hope.
“The worst thing I have is a tremor and my left arm aches constantly because it’s always moving,” he said.
“I don’t have the tremor on the bike but I’ve got the pain in the arm, so I take a couple of Panadol before I hop on the bike and downhill it really aches because you’re hanging on.”
Mr Weeks is a strong advocate of cycling which he says helps stimulate his brain and reduces the effects of Parkinson’s, albeit temporarily.
“The great thing about cycling is with Parkinson’s, the brain needs constant stimulation because I have a part of my brain that is not functioning,” he said.
“With cycling, what I find is when I’ve ridden fairly hard for 80-100km, for the next four or five hours — this thing (his shaking left arm) — calms right down, it’s unbelievable.
“(For those living with Parkinson’s) if you can’t ride a bike outside because your balance is not too good, get on a trainer and ride it every day because it makes such a vast difference.
“And because Parkinson’s depresses a lot of people, it really keeps you positive when you’re on the bike.
“I’ve got a real reason to get on the bike because I’m not just going to out train, I’m going out to improve my balance and my health.
“Because Parkinson’s is a degenerative disease, I’m trying as hard as I can to stay at the same level and it seems to be working at the moment.”
The first patient treated in the trial was discharged from hospital within 72 hours and Mr Weeks hopes to be home three days after his operation.
He then plans on getting back on his bike and has signed up for the Bupa Challenge Tour as part of next year’s Santos Tour Down Under in Adelaide