The FDA is holding its first 2016 stem cell meeting today and you can read about some impressions of the morning session of this meeting here. In this post, I’m focusing on the afternoon session, which has been mostly on policy and ethics, including on stem cell clinics. Jonathan Kimmelman from McGill University got the afternoon going […]
Blogging today’s FDA stem cell meeting: Part 2 Clinics, Policy & Ethics Read More »
Journalist Melinda Beck has a new piece on fat stem cell clinics in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) today that includes one very brief quote from me that I believe effectively ends up being an unintentional misquote because of a lack of context. Here in this blog piece I want to provide that important missing
Providing key context for my quote in WSJ on fat stem cell clinics Read More »
Our new paper in the journal Cell Stem Cell on the large stem cell clinic marketplace in the U.S. documented a wide range of different kinds of clinics, stem cells used, and conditions claimed to be treated, but here I want to focus on the fat stem cell clinics in this post. I’m going to try
Last week I blogged about how the FDA had issued a warning letter to a series of three co-owned fat stem cell clinics across the US. What does this FDA action mean on the broader stem cell clinic arena, particularly to those selling fat stem cells? The FDA is still in the process of getting public comment
FDA warning points to tougher regulation of fat stem cells & clinics Read More »
The FDA has sent a Warning Letter to the Irvine Stem Cell Treatment Center. The leader of Irvine Stem Cell Treatment Center is Dr. Thomas Gionis and the letter was addressed to him. Interestingly, this letter, dated December 30, 2015, contains redactions. At one time this clinic was part of the larger Cell Surgical Network (CSN)
FDA Warning Letter to Irvine Stem Cell Treatment Center Clinics Across US 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The FDA released more draft guidance with strong relevance to the stem cell field. This October 2015 new draft guidance follows about a year after three other previous draft guidances that made it clear the current FDA thinking on various issues including stromal vascular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More tough FDA draft guidance on stem cells…still no action Read More »
For years I’ve been writing about fat stem cell clinics that sell non-FDA approved stem cell “treatments” to vulnerable patients right here in America. These clinics have been sprouting up like mushrooms across the US and their numbers may be above 200 today overall. As a result perhaps it was inevitable that one would arrive in
My new ‘neighbor’ in Sacramento: a fat stem cell clinic Read More »
Does size matter when it comes to a guy’s penis? Can a man get bigger and could he do it via stem cells? Today’s post is the 2nd in a series on stem cells being sold allegedly for a better sex life. You can read the first post here. An increasing number of men around the world
Stem cells sold for better sex part 2: bigger & better penis? Read More »
The FDA mandate to regulate drugs and devices often invokes a term called “interstate commerce”. Like many people I thought I knew what that meant, but probably like most people I was wrong. After a great discussion on an original post on various key issues related to the many stem cell clinics doing non-FDA approved
When I started blogging in 2010 the stem cell arena was a very different place including the fact I could count the number of US stem cell clinics on one hand. This blog, called The Niche for many years, was just “Knoepfler Stem Cell Blog” back then. Also, back then the hot topic was the
Stem cell clinics, FDA, & giant, unapproved for-profit human experiments Read More »