What the heck is going on with stem cells in the Philippines lately? It seems like a wild, stormy mixture of supposed good and very bad news streaming out of that country all at once. Many questions remain both on the alleged upside and the down side. Do the reported deaths of 3 politicians really have …
What really happened at XCell-Center in Germany, formerly the largest stem cell clinic in Europe? A baby died after receiving treatment there. Why? Was the death in any way connected to stem cells? (update: note that since post originally went up, quite a few more patient deaths both a clinics and in clinical trials have …
Commenter Claims XCell-Center Stem Cell Clinic Got a Bad Rap, Provides New Details Read More »
I deal with many patient advocates and that is one of my favorite parts of my job. They are wonderful! However some go above and beyond the call of duty and are model advocates in my opinion. Others do some great things, but also some negative things such as attacking the FDA publicly, which serves …
The model of a patient advocate: what are the key elements of success? Read More »
Here on The Niche I’m giving out a Stem Cell Person of the Year Award for 2012 along with all my other annual awards (e.g. best stem cell journal, paper, blog, comic, activist, etc). 2020 update: you can see future winners of the award here. The Person of the Year winner will get recognition for …
Stem Cell Person of the Year Finalists: time to vote Read More »
I was fortunate enough to do my postdoctoral studies at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (aka “The Hutch”) in Seattle. I was a postdoc for more years than I’d like to admit, but it was a wonderful experience. The Hutch is the kind of place where you can imagine making the impossible become possible …
A tribute to Nobel Laureate E. Donnall Thomas, a true stem cell pioneer Read More »
What kind of laugh do you have and what kind of laugher are you? Chuckler? Giggler? Belly laugher? Quiet? Loud? Cry when you laugh? Can’t breathe when you laugh hard? Why do we laugh in the first place? There is actually a field of study of laughter called Gelotology, but despite this scientists do not really …
The science of laughing: what one’s laugh says about you, our Presidents, & Mitt Romney Read More »
I keep seeing these eerie parallels between thalidomide & dubious stem cell treatments. What’s the first rule of medicine again? Do no harm! Rushing new medicines such as stem cell treatments to patients without appropriate preliminary studies to try to make money is like playing Russian Roulette with patients. Some of the time, everything will …
Eerie parallels between thalidomide & dubious stem cell treatments Read More »
Want to win $50 and become a published author? Enter the Knoepfler Lab Stem Cell Blog Essay Contest. Due in 11 days! The challenge? Write a no more than 500 word,convincing, non-fiction essay on stem cells thinking entirely outside the box. Otherwise, the angle you take is totally up to you. Surprise me. Make me …
Still 11 days left to enter stem cell essay contest, get published, & win $50 Read More »
Want to win $50 and become a published author? Enter the Knoepfler Lab Stem Cell Blog Essay Contest. The challenge? Write a no more than 500 word, convincing, non-fiction essay on stem cells thinking entirely outside the box. Otherwise, the angle you take is totally up to you. Surprise me. Make me think. There will …
Stem Cell Essay Contest: $50 prize & essay is published Read More »
What’s the scoop on stem cell sports medicine? So far the role of stem cells in sports medicine is essentially all hype. We see sports stars getting stem cell treatments that are not approved by the FDA and have little if any science behind them. I covered stem cell sports medicine in an earlier post …
Stem Cell Sports Medicine 2.0: entering the red zone Read More »