Dr. Maria Millan, CIRM's President & CEO Funding models are rarely talked about in excited tones. It’s normally relegated to the dry tomes of academia. But in CIRM’s case, the funding model we have created is not just fundamental to our success in advancing regenerative medicine in California, it’s also proving to be a model … Continue reading A model for success
CIRM 2.0
Encouraging news about CIRM-funded clinical trial targeting vision loss
Dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of vision loss in the U.S. By 2020 it’s estimated that as many as three million Americans will be affected by the disease. Right now, there is no effective therapy. But that could change. A new CIRM-funded clinical trial is showing promise in helping people battling … Continue reading Encouraging news about CIRM-funded clinical trial targeting vision loss
Emotions and gratitude at changing of the guard at Stem Cell Agency
Randy, as regular readers of this blog know, is, or rather was, the President and CEO of CIRM. James Harrison is less well known to the outside world but his imprint on CIRM, as our General Counsel and one of the key figures behind Proposition 71, is even bigger than that of Randy’s. Randy came … Continue reading Emotions and gratitude at changing of the guard at Stem Cell Agency
Cured by Stem Cells
To get anywhere you need a good map, and you need to check it constantly to make sure you are still on the right path and haven’t strayed off course. A year ago the CIRM Board gave us a map, a Strategic Plan, that laid out our course for the next five years. Our Annual … Continue reading Cured by Stem Cells
Accelerating the drive for new stem cell treatments
Acceleration is defined as the “increase in the rate or speed of something.” For us that “something” is new stem cell treatments for patients with unmet medical needs. Today our governing Board just approved a $15 million partnership with Quintiles to help us achieve that acceleration. Quintiles was awarded the funding to create a new … Continue reading Accelerating the drive for new stem cell treatments
Why is a cell therapy that restores sight to the blind against the law?
A lot of people are frustrated with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and its woefully slow process for approving stem cell therapies. That’s one of the reasons why we started the CIRM Stem Cell Champions campaign, to gather as many like-minded supporters of stem cell research as possible and help to change the … Continue reading Why is a cell therapy that restores sight to the blind against the law?
What’s the big idea? Or in this case, what’s the 19 big ideas?
Have you ever stood in line in a supermarket checkout line and browsed through the magazines stacked conveniently at eye level? (of course you have, we all have). They are always filled with attention-grabbing headlines like “5 Ways to a Slimmer You by Christmas” or “Ten Tips for Rock Hard Abs” (that one doesn’t work … Continue reading What’s the big idea? Or in this case, what’s the 19 big ideas?
Rare Disease Day, a chance to raise awareness and hope.
Battling a deadly disease like cancer or Alzheimer’s is difficult; but battling a rare and deadly disease is doubly so. At least with common diseases there is a lot of research seeking to develop new treatments. With rare diseases there is often very little research, and so there are fewer options for treatment. Even just … Continue reading Rare Disease Day, a chance to raise awareness and hope.
If you want to accelerate stem cell therapies then create an Accelerating Center
“You can’t teach fish to fly,” is one of the phrases that our CIRM President & CEO, Randy Mills, likes to throw out when asked why we needed to create new centers to help researchers move their most promising therapies out of the lab and into clinical trials. His point is that many researchers are … Continue reading If you want to accelerate stem cell therapies then create an Accelerating Center
The 10 Most Popular Stem Cellar Stories of 2015
Each new year is exciting for CIRM because it means we’re one year closer to funding a stem cell therapy that will be approved for the treatment of an unmet medical need. 2015 was especially exciting for us. Under our new president Randy Mills, we launched our accelerated funding process, CIRM 2.0, and received Board … Continue reading The 10 Most Popular Stem Cellar Stories of 2015