Pos­i­tive piv­otal cell graft da­ta bring No­var­tis-backed Boston biotech step clos­er to fin­ish line

Gami­da Cell — the No­var­tis-backed Is­raeli biotech de­vel­op­ing a cell graft to help pa­tients with blood can­cer ad­dress­ing lim­i­ta­tions as­so­ci­at­ed with bone mar­row trans­plants — has its first taste of late-stage da­ta, paving the way for US ap­proval.

The ther­a­py, called omidu­bi­cel, is com­prised of stem cells, prog­en­i­tor cells as well as den­drit­ic cells ex­tract­ed from the um­bil­i­cal cord. It was test­ed in 125 pa­tients aged 12-65 years suf­fer­ing from high-risk lethal blood can­cers. One group of pa­tients un­der­go­ing a bone mar­row trans­plant re­ceived omidu­bi­cel, while the com­para­tor group was giv­en a stan­dard um­bil­i­cal cord blood trans­plant.

Unlock this article instantly by becoming a free subscriber.

You’ll get access to free articles each month, plus you can customize what newsletters get delivered to your inbox each week, including breaking news.

SIGN UP LOG IN BECOME A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER