A new procedure reported in the current issue of Nature Biotechnology has been shown to be a safe and effective method for introducing stem cells into the retina. Implantation of a specially engineered patch of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells derived from stem cells has restored some vision in two people with sight loss from [Read More]
Results from two new clinical trials have added support for the use of human embryonic stem cells as treatment for the dry form of macular degeneration. Stem cells injected into the eye appear to have replaced the missing cells damaged by the disease, with no serious side effects. One study suggests it may have even improved patients’ [Read More]
Commentary by Dan Roberts, Editor Living Well With Low Vision The low vision community has been shaken this past week by news of three patients whose vision was damaged by stem cell treatment at a Florida clinic in 2015. There is good reason for concern, but not about the future of stem cell therapy for [Read More]
Results from First Cohort Expected in the Second Quarter of 2016 Acucela (formerly Ocata) has announced that the first patient has been enrolled in the company’s Phase 2 clinical trial using Ocata’s proprietary RPE cells in patients with atrophic (dry) age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The purpose of the trial is to evaluate safety and explore efficacy as compared [Read More]
Ocata Therapeutics, Inc. (now owned by Acucela) has announced positive results in four Asian patients who were treated with the company’s proprietary RPE stem cells. These new data support previously reported positive long-term safety and signs of visual improvement, as reported here in October 2014. The Korean study, published online in Stem Cell Reports, features [Read More]