The purpose of the 21st Century Cures Act, which was signed into US law on December 13, 2016, is to promote the acceleration of scientific research and FDA approval of therapies that can prevent and ultimately cure certain types of illnesses, speed up drug and medical device development, and focus on other health service crises and delivery approaches. The US Senate Health Committee Chairman, Lamar Alexander, called the 21st Century Cures Act the most important bill of the year.
This significant piece of legislation allows for a specific Regenerative Medicine/Advanced Therapy (RMAT) product designation and calls for specific language relating to regenerative medicine, advancing the FDA’s approval system for these kinds of revolutionary therapeutic products. The 21st Century Cures Act includes funding for The Regenerative Medicine Innovation Project, which will earmark capital to support clinical research utilizing adult stem cells.
Regenerative medicine carries great hopes for the treatment and cure of different types of injuries and diseases using stem cells and other technologies that repair or restore unhealthy cells, tissues, or organs. Stem cells have the capability to multiply and differentiate into more mature cells in order to repair the body. The Cures Act will award $30 million in federal funds over a period of four years to accelerate this field of research in the hopes of developing safe, effective regenerative medicine therapies.
Some forms of regenerative medicine are already in use in the medical field to help speed up cell repair and lessen pain after some types of surgical procedures. At the Spine Institute Northwest, Dr. Solomon Kamson uses stem cell therapy for patients who have suffered severe joint, ligament, or muscle damage but may not yet be surgical candidates. In some cases, these regenerative treatments can be used along with surgical procedures to accelerate and encourage healing. Dr. Kamson uses regenerative therapies, when applicable, in order to help in the repair of shoulder injuries, chronic or acute sports injuries, accidental trauma, slightly degenerative discs, and herniated discs.
Dr. Kamson provides various types of stem cell therapy to advance healing at the cellular level. Not only can treatments such as MatriStem A-Cell injection, platelet-rich plasma therapy and BioD regenerative therapy help alleviate pain, they can also truly repair the tissue damage that is causing pain. If you’d like to learn more about the regenerative medicine therapies offered at the Spine Institute Northwest, please contact our offices today by calling (888) 712-0318.