Here at CIRM, we get calls every day from patients asking us if there are any trials or therapies available to treat their illness or an illness affecting a loved one. Unfortunately, there are some predatory clinics that try to take advantage of this desperation by advertising unproven and unregulated treatments for a wide range … Continue reading Regulated, reputable, and reliable – distinguishing legitimate clinical trials from predatory clinics
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Clinical trials: separating the wheat from the chaff
What do you do when the supposed solution to a problem actually turns out to be a part of the problem? That’s the situation facing people who want to direct patients to scientifically sound clinical trials. Turns out the site many were going to may be directing patients to therapies that are not only not … Continue reading Clinical trials: separating the wheat from the chaff
Gene therapy and blood stem cells cure sickle cell disease patients
Sickle-shaped blood cells. The cells become lodged in blood vessels, causing strokes or excruciating pain as blood stops flowing. Photo courtesy of Omikron/Science Source Blood is the lifeline of the body. The continuous, unimpeded circulation of blood maintains oxygen flow throughout the body and enables us to carry out our everyday activities. Unfortunately, there are … Continue reading Gene therapy and blood stem cells cure sickle cell disease patients
Peddling hope for thousands of dollars – a TV expose on one clinic offering unproven stem cell therapies
You may have seen an ad in your local paper, promoting a seminar on the “wonders” of stem cell therapies. They are becoming increasingly common all around the US. The ads talk about the ability of stem cells to heal everything from arthritis to autism. But what they don’t talk about is that they are … Continue reading Peddling hope for thousands of dollars – a TV expose on one clinic offering unproven stem cell therapies
Stem Cell Roundup: Jake Javier’s amazing spirit; TV report highlights clinic offering unproven stem cell therapies
In the Roundup we usually focus on studies that highlight advances in stem cell research but today we’re going to do something a little different. Instead of relying on print for our stories, we’re turning to video. We begin with a piece about Jake Javier. Regular readers of our blog will remember that Jake is … Continue reading Stem Cell Roundup: Jake Javier’s amazing spirit; TV report highlights clinic offering unproven stem cell therapies
Stem Cell Roundup: Protein shows promise in treating deadliest form of breast cancer: mosquito spit primes our body for disease
Triple negative breast cancer is more aggressive and difficult to treat than other forms of the disease and, as a result, is more likely to spread throughout the body and to recur after treatment. Now a team at the University of Southern California have identified a protein that could help change that. The research, published … Continue reading Stem Cell Roundup: Protein shows promise in treating deadliest form of breast cancer: mosquito spit primes our body for disease
Pregnant women’s stem cells could help battle brittle bone diseases like osteoporosis
Sometimes I wonder how a scientist ever came up with an idea for a potential treatment. Case in point is a study in the journal Scientific Reports, where researchers use stem cells from the amniotic fluid of a pregnant woman to cure osteoporosis in mice! What researcher, seeing a pregnant woman, thought to her or … Continue reading Pregnant women’s stem cells could help battle brittle bone diseases like osteoporosis
Out of the mouths, or in this case hearts, of babes comes a hopeful therapy for heart attack patients
Lessons learned from babies with heart failure could now help adults Inspiration can sometimes come from the most unexpected of places. For English researcher Stephen Westaby it came from seeing babies who had heart attacks bounce back and recover. It led Westaby to a new line of research that could offer hope to people who … Continue reading Out of the mouths, or in this case hearts, of babes comes a hopeful therapy for heart attack patients