Geron Gets Cleared for First Embryonic Stem-Cell Test
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Geron Corp. said it was cleared by U.S. regulators to proceed with the first human test of an embryonic stem-cell therapy, aimed at patients with spinal-cord injuries. The shares rose 17 percent.
The Food and Drug Administration lifted a clinical hold on the study imposed last August when the company revealed that mice used in experimental work had developed cysts, Geron said in a statement. The company may start recruiting patients with new spinal cord injuries in about one month, said Thomas Okarma, Geron’s president and chief executive officer, in a telephone interview today.