A while back, I did a post on the FDA audit report of Celltex and I think I made a mistake in the title of that post: Surprising FDA audit report of Celltex a blow to for-profit adult stem cell industry. What I meant was the dubious stem cell industry. The title I used was too vague […]
Cancer is often referred to as the “Big C”. It’s a powerful word with many implications. Another “Big C” word is “Cure”. I believe “Cure” is also a loaded word. I am a cancer survivor and cancer scientist. You can read more about my experience here. Recently I got some more good news on the
Should I get a stem cell treatment? I regularly get contacted by patients considering dubious stem cell treatments, asking me that question. They want advice and have many questions. Most of them are seriously considering stem cell treatments because they have an illness that today’s “modern” medicine cannot help. Tens of millions of people are
Can stem cells treat the different forms of arthritis that plague 100s of millions of people across the globe? A couple years back I did a post in my disease focus series on the potential of stem cells to be used as treatments for osteoarthritis (OA). OA affects almost 30 million people in the U.S.
Stem cells for arthritis: are we there yet? Read More »
Now six years into its existence, the induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell field is no longer in its infancy to put it mildly but what will it take to get IPS cells to patients? Perhaps one might say that cutting edge new scientific fields advance in dog years. In that way of thinking, the iPS
What will it take to get iPS cells to patients? Read More »
Celltex, the controversial stem cell clinic in Texas, announced in a press release (PR) today a couple of new hires. It also fired up its website for the first time that I am aware of. You can check out the website here. Wow. The website is notable since it has been inactive for quite some
New Celltex website goes live for the first time, making many safety & efficacy claims Read More »
Is blogging for scientists a good idea? With my concise advice below, you should be ready to get started. I say, “Go for it!” I know there are quite a lot of people interested in starting to blog, but perhaps a bit uncertain or even intimidated by the idea. I think this is especially true
Top ten tips for blogging for scientists Read More »
Has there been stem cell doping in the Olympics? Readers of this blog have been asking me this question more than any other in the last week. Part of the impetus for this question is the growing number of professional athletes who more generally have received dubious stem cell treatments in foreign countries, perhaps treatments
Question of the week: is there stem cell doping in the Olympics? Read More »
Stem cells grown in culture are drugs. Agree or disagree? I believe it is a correct statement. I don’t think it is even a question any more as it was a few months ago. Yes, I am convinced that the FDA, as supported by a recent federal court ruling, has it right that growing stem
2 decades as cell biologist tell me grown stem cells are drugs Read More »
There was a burst of feeling last night in the stem cell community as word began circulating that a federal court had ruled in favor of the FDA defining manipulated stem cell products as drugs. However, not everyone was pleased with the court ruling. The clinics most directly affected by the ruling were understandably upset,
Refuting potential downsides to stem cell drug court ruling Read More »