Last week I attended a veterinary regenerative medicine conference in Sacramento, California.  The North American Veterinary Regenerative Medicine Association (NAVRMA) was founded in 2010 to bring together the best minds in the stem cell world to discuss research findings and share perspectives on how stem cells can provide treatment options for animals.  Over 100 of the key veterinary stem cell scientists and practitioners met and were educated by the academic and scientific leaders of stem cell research.  I was an invited speaker and was also asked to lead a workshop focused on the education of veterinarians about being a clinical study investigator.  On Sunday, September 9^th, I presented ground-breaking stem cell safety data from the VetStem Research and Development program as part of our FDA product development.

Lectures ranged from clinical applications to basic science and discovery of how stem cells work and how they can best be applied to solve veterinary disease challenges.  Included in the program were talks on kidney disease, arthritis and lameness, and many immune-mediated diseases.  The keynote lecture by human doctor Farshid Guilak from Washington University focused on new discoveries of how we can modify stem cells for even better disease-fighting power.  Very cutting-edge work!

VetStem is proud to be in the forefront in bringing cell therapy into the hands of the practicing veterinarian and we are grateful to the many horse and pet owners that have trusted stem cell therapy for the care of their beloved animals.  I have been a regular speaker at the NAVRMA meetings and this meeting, as in the past, has provided opportunities to collaborate with stem cell enthusiasts around the world with the goal of bringing the healing power of regenerative medicine to our animals in the most rapid manner.

Two weeks ago, there was an historic international stem cell meeting for veterinarians in Costa Rica.  I was an invited speaker to provide an overview of the last 20 years of veterinary stem cell research and clinical use.  Senior veterinarians from Argentina, Brazil, Guatemala, Costa Rica and the United States attended for two full days of lectures and discussions.  There was a large focus on dogs and cats and how stem cells are being used to successfully treated arthritis, eye diseases, kidney failure and many others.  It was exciting to see that the use of stem cells in our animals has expanded around the globe and that we have colleagues everywhere that are expanding the field.

Additionally, an international veterinary stem cell association was formed, IACERVET (International Association of Cellular and Regenerative Veterinary Therapies).  There are members from around the world including Europe.  I have been asked to serve as a founding member and to serve on the guiding board of directors.  This is an amazing step towards efficient sharing of knowledge and improving care of animals!

Attached is a picture or Dr. Michelle Andrade, Dr. Natalia Luka, Dr. Luciana Benedetti, Dr. Bob Harman, and Dr. Priscilla Ortiz (association president) all founding members, signing the official association formation documents in San Jose Costa Rica.

Last week the largest gathering in the world on healthcare convened in San Francisco. The Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM) held its annual “State of the Industry” talk that reviewed 2017 and previewed 2018. It was, without doubt, the most exciting such update since ARM began this briefing.

The briefing on 2017 showed not one, but three cell therapy approvals! Although these cell therapies are directed at cancer therapy, they are cell therapy and showed that the FDA is willing to fast-track really legitimate new cell products. Perhaps more exciting to us in the adult stem cell area is the recommendation by a European Medicines committee to approve the first adipose-derived stem cell therapy for human Crohn’s Disease! This is the same type of cell therapy product that VetStem is testing for approval in veterinary medicine. This would be a first in Europe for people!

The briefing also previewed 2018 with the prospect for more approvals and they stated they expect 40 new cell products in the next five years.

VetStem is proud to be in the forefront in bringing cell therapy into the hands of the practicing veterinarian and we are grateful to the many owners who have trusted VetStem to provide Regenerative Cell Therapy for arthritis and tendon and ligament injuries for their beloved animals.

You can watch the Cell & Gene Therapies State of the Industry Briefing here.