Ossium Health, an innovative bioengineering company that established a first-of-its-kind bone marrow bank, announced today the launch of a new program that further expands patient access to Ossium’s bone marrow. Through the HOPE (HPC Offered for PRESERVE Expansion) Program, patients that need an allogeneic bone marrow transplant but are ineligible to participate in Ossium’s active clinical study (PRESERVE I) have a new opportunity to receive bone marrow from Ossium’s bank.
The goal of Ossium’s PRESERVE trials is to establish organ donor bone marrow as a new source of stem cells for hematologic reconstitution and unlock access to stem cell transplants for the thousands of patients who search unsuccessfully for a donor each year. The company recently initiated the PRESERVE I clinical study and is currently enrolling patients at five transplant centers across the United States. Through PRESERVE I, 12 patients with acute leukemias will receive a transplant with bone marrow from Ossium’s bank, generating the safety and efficacy data required to initiate a long-term phase 2 study (PRESERVE II).
Ossium launched the HOPE Program after recognizing the sheer volume of patients that need a bone marrow transplant but are unable to participate in the PRESERVE I study due to its eligibility criteria or the patient’s geography. For example, patients that have a non-malignant blood disorder or that live outside the US may not be able to participate in the PRESERVE I study but could be eligible to receive a transplant through the HOPE Program.
“Thousands of patients in the US and tens of thousands abroad desperately need a bone marrow transplant but can’t find a donor,” said Kevin Caldwell, Ossium’s CEO, Co-Founder & President. “While the PRESERVE clinical program will provide the data necessary to enter global registries and improve bone marrow accessibility long-term, these patients can’t wait for us to complete our clinical study. The HOPE Program is intended to fill that gap.”
Through the HOPE Program, patients across the globe can receive bone marrow from Ossium’s bank free of charge. Since Ossium’s bone marrow is cryopreserved and available on-demand, physicians can order it from Ossium and receive the product within days, allowing unrelated donor transplants to be performed at unprecedented speeds.