07-06-2012 07:39 Cell being the smallest part of any organism, is a building block of life. Cell therapies often focus on the treatment of hereditary diseases, with methods of gene therapy. The journal describes biology of a cell and the process of pioneering new cells into a tissue in order to negotiate a disease. Read more: OMICS Group :: Journal of Cell Science … Continue reading →

Newswise SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Its the most common form of skin cancer, but in its advanced stages, basal cell carcinoma has the potential to become disfiguring and life threatening. An international phase 2 study headed by Mayo Clinic led to the recent Food and Drug Administration approval of the first drug of its kind to help advanced basal cell carcinoma patients who have few treatment options. The results appear in the June 7 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. The study found the drug Erivedge (vismodegib) shrank advanced basal cell carcinoma tumors in 43 percent of patients with locally advanced disease and in 30 percent of patients whose disease spread to other organs. This targeted therapy represents a new paradigm in cancer treatment, says lead researcher Aleksandar Sekulic, M.D., Ph.D., a dermatologist and cancer researcher at Mayo Clinic in Arizona. More than 2 million cases of basal and squamous cell skin cancer are found in this country each year. Basal cell carcinoma accounts for approximately 80 percent of all diagnosed non-melanoma skin cancers, according to the American Cancer Society. It occurs when a basal cell develops a mutation in its DNA, causing it to multiply rapidly, with the potential … Continue reading →

LEUVEN, BELGIUM--(Marketwire -06/08/12)- TiGenix (EURONEXT:TIG) TiGenix obtains national reimbursement in the Netherlands for breakthrough cartilage therapy ChondroCelect TiGenix (EURONEXT:TIG) announced today that its innovative cartilage repair therapy ChondroCelect has obtained national reimbursement in the Netherlands. The Dutch National Health Authority (NZa) has formally announced that ChondroCelect is to receive national reimbursement retroactively per January 1, 2012. Previously ChondroCelect was made available in the Netherlands under a risk-sharing scheme. "We are delighted with the decision of the NZa to reimburse ChondroCelect, and look forward to working with Dutch orthopedic centers of excellence and health insurers to routinely make this breakthrough therapy available to the right patients in the Netherlands," said Eduardo Bravo, CEO of TiGenix. "Dutch clinicians and scientists have been instrumental in ChondroCelect's development and four Cartilage Expert Centers in the Netherlands have already gained extensive experience with the procedure. After having obtained national reimbursement in Belgium last year, this constitutes another major step in improving patient access to this innovative therapy. We remain optimistic that we can obtain national reimbursement in other European countries later this year." About TiGenix TiGenix NV (EURONEXT:TIG) is a leading European cell therapy company with a marketed product for cartilage repair, ChondroCelect, and a … Continue reading →