Evie Vaccaro You can’t look at this photo and not smile. This is Evie Vaccaro, and it’s clear she is just bursting with energy and vitality. Sometimes it feels like I have known Evie all her life. In a way I have. And I feel so fortunate to have done so, and that’s why this … Continue reading Celebrating a life that almost didn’t happen
Severe Combined Immunodeficiency
CIRM Board Meeting Highlights Important Updates to Clinical Trials
Dr. Maria T. Millan, President and CEO of CIRM, presenting the President's Report This past Thursday the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) were presented with an update on CIRM’s clinical portfolio, which to date includes 60 clinical trials in various areas including kidney failure, cancer, and other rare diseases. The … Continue reading CIRM Board Meeting Highlights Important Updates to Clinical Trials
Stem Cell/Gene Therapy combo heals patients battling rare disorder
Brenden Whittaker and his dog: Photo by Colin McGuire A few years ago, Brenden Whittaker was running out of time. Brenden was born with a rare condition called x-linked chronic granulomatous disease or XCGD. It meant he lacked a critical part of his immune system that protects against bacterial or fungal infections. Over 22 years … Continue reading Stem Cell/Gene Therapy combo heals patients battling rare disorder
Good news for two CIRM-supported therapies
Jake Javier, a patient in the spinal cord injury stem cell therapy clinical trial It’s always satisfying to see two projects you have supported for a long time do well. That’s particularly true when the projects in question are targeting conditions that have no other effective therapies. This week we learned that a clinical trial … Continue reading Good news for two CIRM-supported therapies
New Report Says CIRM Produces Big Economic Boost for California
An independent Economic Impact Report says the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has had a major impact on California’s economy, creating tens of thousands of new jobs, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in new taxes, and producing billions of dollars in additional revenue for the state. The report, done by Dan Wei and … Continue reading New Report Says CIRM Produces Big Economic Boost for California
How a see-through fish could one day lead to substitutes for bone marrow transplants
Human blood stem cells For years researchers have struggled to create human blood stem cells in the lab. They have done it several times with animal models, but the human kind? Well, that’s proved a bit trickier. Now a CIRM-funded team at UC San Diego (UCSD) think they have cracked the code. And that would … Continue reading How a see-through fish could one day lead to substitutes for bone marrow transplants
CIRM-funded therapy helps “bubble babies” lead a normal life
Ja'Ceon Golden; 'cured" of SCID At CIRM we are very cautious about using the “c” word. Saying someone has been “cured” is a powerful statement but one that loses its meaning when over used or used inappropriately. However, in the case of a new study from U.C. San Francisco and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital … Continue reading CIRM-funded therapy helps “bubble babies” lead a normal life
71 for Proposition 71
Proposition 71 is the state ballot initiative that created California's Stem Cell Agency. This month, the Agency reached another milestone when the 71st clinical trial was initiated in the CIRM Alpha Stem Cell Clinics (ASCC) Network. The ASCC Network deploys specialized teams of doctors, nurses and laboratory technicians to conduct stem cell clinical trials at … Continue reading 71 for Proposition 71
Stem Cell Agency celebrates 50 clinical trials with patient #1
Yesterday the CIRM Board approved funding for our 50th clinical trial (you can read about that here) It was an historic moment for us and to celebrate we decided to go back in history and hear from the very first person to be treated in a CIRM-funded clinical trial. Rich Lajara was treated in the … Continue reading Stem Cell Agency celebrates 50 clinical trials with patient #1
Stories that caught our eye: SanBio’s Traumatic Brain Injury trial hits its target; A new approach to endometriosis; and a SCID kid celebrates Halloween in style
Hopeful signs for treating brain injuries There are more than 200,000 cases of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the US every year. The injuries can be devastating, resulting in everything from difficult sleeping to memory loss, depression and severe disability. There is no cure. But this week the SanBio Group had some encouraging news from … Continue reading Stories that caught our eye: SanBio’s Traumatic Brain Injury trial hits its target; A new approach to endometriosis; and a SCID kid celebrates Halloween in style