CIRM has always recognized that the hope of new stem cell therapies for people who need them hovers in a distant future. That makes patients who need treatment now susceptible to false promises from practitioners offering unproven and unregulated treatments. Some of those unproven treatments are even harmful.
A few years ago we developed a stem cell tourism web page. The resources provides information about stem cell tourism and some useful links to patients looking for more information.
Today, we join 12 other organizations in issuing a joint “Patient Advisory for Stem Cell Therapy and Medical Tourism.” This document provides a more robust and detailed set of issues patients should consider.
Clearly new therapies cannot happen without innovation. However, innovations needs to occur in a controlled fashion and in a framework of regulation that protects patients. That framework must also ensuree that information about treatment outcomes is shared. That knowledge can accelerate our pace to finding the best treatment, rather than just a treatment.
The new document offers advice to patients and families on educating themselves, on what is appropriate informed consent and specific things to look for in a clinical trial. It also advises that you should have the opportunity to ask questions and suggests the types of questions you should ask.
The document addresses one of our pet peeves: those clinic ads that come up on web searches and seem to be offering everything to everyone:
“A single stem cell treatment will not work on a multitude of unrelated diseases or conditions. Thus, it is unlikely that a single cell type can be used to treat a multitude of unrelated diseases that involve different tissues or organs.”
The other endorsing organizations include the International Society for Stem Cell Research and the International Society for Cellular Therapy. The full list of organizations is at the bottom of the advisory.
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Looking for stem cell therapy for RA What is best stem cell treatment. Am I southern Calif.
Dear Molly, I am sorry to hear about your diagnosis with RA. I know how challenging and painful that can be. Unfortunately we don’t have any RA therapies in clinical trials in California at all. I did a search on the http://www.clinicaltrials.gov website – that’s a list of all the clinical trials registered with the National Institutes of Health – but didn’t find any that I thought would be appropriate. I’m sorry I cannot be of more help.
kevin