Iraq Veteran Will Be First to Get Adult Stem Cell Treatment for Spinal Cord Injury in FDA Trial
Studying Stem Cells Dr. Gabriel Lasala and Dr. Jose Minguell examine cells in TCA Cellular Therapy's lab. Business Wire Last week, the FDA gave biotech firm Geron the green light to proceed with clinical trials of an embryonic stem cell treatment for spinal cord injuries. But while we wait on promising embryonic stem cell research to clear political and regulatory hurdles, adult stem cell research is trucking right along. Yesterday it was announced that Iraq War veteran and Marine Matt Cole, paralyzed from the chest down since a 2005 insurgent attack in Iraq, has enrolled as the first patient in the first FDA clinical trial of adult stem cells used to treat spinal cord injuries. The procedure involves removing a couple of thousand adult stem cells from Cole's bone marrow, multiplying them in the lab and injecting them into his spinal cord. That should happen later this month. Nine other...