National May 7, 2020
Japan Red Cross seeks donors as blood and bone marrow supplies run low
The coronavirus hasn't just crippled the economy, it has also scared away those who supply the one thing that hospitals need most: blood.
National / Science & Health Feb 24, 2020
Japan's transplant services work to maintain donor-patient anonymity in age of social media
One of the most important rules in donating organs or bone marrow is to maintain the anonymity of the donor and recipient, including from each other. But with more people using the internet and social media, there are cases in which identities may be revealed, ...
World / Science & Health Feb 7, 2020
CRISPR passes test: Patients show no side effects after immune systems genetically edited
U.S. scientists have succeeded in genetically editing the immune systems of three cancer patients using CRISPR without creating any side effects, a first for the tool, which is revolutionizing biomedical research. The highly anticipated results from the first phase of a clinical trial were published ...
National Feb 1, 2020
Police helicopter carrying heart for transplant crashes in Fukushima, injuring seven
A Fukushima Prefectural Police helicopter crash-landed Saturday in the city of Koriyama in the prefecture, injuring all seven people on board, including four seriously, authorities said. Five police officers and two medical workers were on board the aircraft, which was transporting a heart for transplant ...
National / Science & Health Jan 28, 2020
Osaka University transplants iPS cell-based heart cells in world's first clinical trial
An Osaka University team said it has carried out the world's first transplant of cardiac muscle cells created from iPS cells in a physician-initiated clinical trial. In the clinical project to verify the safety and efficacy of the therapy using induced pluripotent stem cells, Yoshiki ...
National / Science & Health Jan 25, 2020
An expert panel of the health ministry on Friday approved a clinical research program proposed by a Kyoto University team to transplant cartilage made from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells to damaged knee joints. Professor Noriyuki Tsumaki and other members of the team are planning ...
National / Science & Health Jan 13, 2020
Cancer-related genetic abnormalities have reportedly occurred during the process of transforming induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells supplied by Kyoto University into intended cell types at recipient research institutes. None of the affected iPS cells, which are used for regenerative medicine, have been used for transplantation, ...
National / Science & Health Dec 24, 2019
Japan approves research program to grow human organs in pigs
A science ministry committee on Monday approved a research program to grow human organs, such as the pancreas, inside the bodies of pigs for use in medical transplantation. The study will be carried out by a team including Hiroshi Nagashima, professor at Meiji University, and ...
Business / Corporate Nov 26, 2019
Major chemical maker Asahi Kasei Corp. has said it will purchase Veloxis Pharmaceuticals Inc. of the U.S. by February. The acquisition price will come to some ¥143.2 billion. Through the purchase of the U.S. drugmaker, Asahi Kasei hopes to establish a business foundation in the growing ...
Asia Pacific / Crime & Legal Nov 21, 2019
Police in Kazakhstan detained a doctor this week for harvesting organs from poor people and using them in illegal transplants for wealthy foreigners, the interior ministry said. People from Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan were among those who had been "forced to sell their kidneys due ...
Asia Pacific Nov 15, 2019
Study casts doubt on China's claims to have ended forced organ harvesting from prisoners
China is engaged in the "systemic falsification" of voluntary organ donation data, an academic paper suggested Friday, calling into question Beijing's claim to have ended forced harvesting of organs from prisoners. In a study published in the peer-reviewed journal BMC Medical Ethics, three academics examined ...
World / Science & Health Oct 16, 2019
Retired subway and bus driver Stanley De Freitas had just celebrated his 70th birthday when he started coughing, tiring easily and feeling short of breath. He was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, a severe scarring of the lungs, and put on the wait list for ...