I’ve read a lot of bad writing in the past year including on prostate cancer. Lucky me, right? It’s probably true for most of us. However, a new piece in Slate on prostate cancer and the Movember movement (an effort that raises awareness and funds for prostate cancer research) takes the cake as the absolute worst …
The worst thing I’ve read all year: @Slate piece on prostate cancer Read More »
Congratulations to Dr. Jeanne Loring, the winner of the Stem Cell Person of the Year Award for 2015. Facing steep competition from a very tough field of competitors of finalists, Jeanne came out as the winner for her exceptional contributions in 2015 and throughout her many years in the field. She not only has made …
Stem Cell Person of the Year 2015: Jeanne Loring Read More »
Astellas Pharma is on track to purchase Ocata Therapeutics (formerly Advanced Cell Technology). This has stirred a lot of strong feelings amongst investors in Ocata. (Update, now almost 5 years later, the Ocata vision program is still not going full steam ahead at its new owner it seems). I’ve also been wondering what exactly is …
What is Astellas Pharma, the purchaser of Ocata? Read More »
I asked Ocata CSO, Bob Lanza, for a comment on the big news of the acquisition of the company by Astellas. Here’s what he had to say: “I can say that this is an exciting time for regenerative medicine. The merger should greatly accelerate the pace of discovery, and, I hope, lead to treatments for …
Brief quote from Bob Lanza on Ocata acquisition by Astellas Read More »
Bombshell news in the stem cell field as Ocata Therapeutics (OCAT; formerly Advanced Cell Technology or ACT) is reportedly to be acquired by Astellas Pharma, Inc. The offer for purchase of OCAT will be $8.50/share or almost $380 million. For more details see this detailed PDF from Astellas. This quote on the deal form Ocata: “Paul …
Ocata bought by Astellas of Japan: initial perspectives on end of an era Read More »
A patient in Japan has reportedly filed suit against a fat stem cell clinic and has won a judgement of 1.84 million yen in total (about $15,000 USD). The Tokyo District Court reportedly ruled in favor of the patient and most of the award is reimbursement. Authors Ikka, et al report on the case and …
By Heather Main I was a little ashamed of myself that I didn’t know who half of the finalists were in Paul Knoepfler’s Stem Cell Person of the Year Award. I decided to look into it and find out what (or who) I have missed…..Interestingly, 3 of the 7 listed here are not scientists but …
Mini-bios on finalists for Stem Cell Person of the Year Read More »
Paolo Bianco reportedly has died at age 60. This is terribly sad news and a huge loss for the stem cell community. Paolo made great contributions both in the science of stem cells itself and also in the area of advocating for responsible science. It is challenging to do both and he did it incredibly …
Stem cell field in mourning: Paolo Bianco dies at 60 Read More »
Remember good old Celltex? That’s the Texas stem cell clinic with the famous patient, former Texas Governor and two-time GOP Presidential hopeful, Rick Perry. It ran afoul of the FDA and headed for the border, setting up shop in Cancun, Mexico. They have since mostly flown under the radar with the exception of their concerning …
Tex-Mex Stem Cell Clinic, Celltex, on PR roll with young & famous patients Read More »
The FDA released more draft guidance with strong relevance to the stem cell field. This October 2015 new draft guidance follows about a year after three other previous draft guidances that made it clear the current FDA thinking on various issues including stromal vascular fraction (SVF; fat stem cells) was much more restrictive than generally …
More tough FDA draft guidance on stem cells…still no action Read More »