Stem Cell Agency Approves Funding for Clinical Trials Targeting Parkinson’s Disease and Blindness

The governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) yesterday invested $32.92 million to fund the Stem Cell Agency’s first clinical trial in Parkinson’s disease (PD), and to support three clinical trials targeting different forms of vision loss. This brings the total number of clinical trials funded by CIRM to 60. The PD … Continue reading Stem Cell Agency Approves Funding for Clinical Trials Targeting Parkinson’s Disease and Blindness

A stem cell clinical trial for blindness: watch Rosie’s story

https://youtu.be/oH4vlVWl6WY Everything we do at CIRM is laser-focused on our mission: to accelerate stem cell treatments for patients with unmet medical needs. So, you might imagine what a thrill it is to meet the people who could be helped by the stem cell research we fund. People like Rosie Barrero who suffers from Retinitis Pigmentosa … Continue reading A stem cell clinical trial for blindness: watch Rosie’s story

A patient perspective on how stem cells could give a second vision to the blind

October is Blindness Awareness month. In honor of the patients who suffer from diseases of blindness and of the scientists and doctors who work tirelessly to develop treatments and cures for these diseases, we are featuring an interview with Kristin Macdonald, a woman who is challenged by Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). RP is a genetically inherited … Continue reading A patient perspective on how stem cells could give a second vision to the blind

Cell mate: the man who makes stem cells for clinical trials

When we announced that one of the researchers we fund - Dr. Henry Klassen at the University of California, Irvine - has begun his clinical trial to treat the vision-destroying disease retinitis pigmentosa, we celebrated the excitement felt by the researchers and the hope from people with the disease. But we missed out one group. … Continue reading Cell mate: the man who makes stem cells for clinical trials

Da Mayor and the clinical trial that could help save his vision

Former San Francisco Mayor and California State Assembly Speaker Willie Brown is many things, but shy is not one of them. A profile of him in the San Francisco Chronicle once described him as “Brash, smart, confident”. But for years Da Mayor – as he is fondly known in The City – said very little … Continue reading Da Mayor and the clinical trial that could help save his vision