Regulation reins in stem cell therapy 

 26-Aug-15, Nature 

Chinese stem-cell scientists have welcomed long-awaited measures that, state media claim, will rein in rogue use of stem cells in clinics while allowing research.

Image: Liu Haifeng / Xinhua Press / Corbis

The measures — announced on 21 August by China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission — offer a straightforward path towards clinical studies, researchers told Nature. But some also warn that the measures do not have the teeth needed to stop clinics offering unproven and unapproved treatments.

For years, clinics around China have been ignoring government regulations and warnings from the scientific community, offering desperate patients costly and, according to experts, probably ineffective treatments. These were often labelled as clinical trials as a cover to charge patients. 

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