Roche, Hospira to participate in cell therapy industry partnership

Roche, Hospira and Genzyme are among the companies to commit to participating in planned initiatives designed to foster greater cooperation in the cell therapy sector.

The International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT) is also working with the likes of Life Technologies and Lonza to promote consensus and discussion on issues such as product development, business models and shared standards.

This commitment comes in response to recommendations made by the ISCT Industry Task Force, which is comprised of representatives from these firms, alongside academics and clinicians.

Among the measures set to be launched is the introduction of the ISCT Industry Community, designed to establish priorities for the sector through discussions with industry opinion leaders.

Dr Ed Horwitz, president of ISCT, said: "Working in partnership to develop standards around cell characterisation and potency, as well as treatment approaches and trial endpoint design, we aim to facilitate entry into the cell therapy space for large healthcare and pharmaceutical companies."

The ISCT has been in operation since 1992 and provides a forum for cell therapy experts from 40 different countries.