The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine recently approved two new University of California Davis research initiatives, which take aim at childhood diseases like Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff disease, as well as solid tumor cancer cells.

“The projects that our board approved today are a great example of work that takes innovative approaches to developing new therapies for a wide variety of diseases,” said Jonathon Thomas, chair of the CIRM board.
The approval likely means that huge amounts of new research dollars will pour into the field of regenerative medicine.

The funding will advance technology, as well as understanding of this relatively new form of medicine, making it more accessible in areas of the country where it is, for lack of a better word, somewhat taboo.

Areas of the country where regenerative medicine is not yet prominent because of opposition from religious leaders, like in Dallas, or lack of access due to economic strife, like Detroit, may see more widespread access to these resources as a result of the increased funding.

The good news comes at a time when regenerative medicine seems to be making big, frequent breakthroughs — from Capitol Hill all the way back to the research lab.

According to Medical News Today, the announcement marked another huge victory for stem cell therapy, as functional tissue has successfully been grown into the spines of rats without any error or complications.

This means that stem cells are even more robust in the hands of our healthcare system, allowing some debilitating or even deadly spinal injuries to become a thing of the past.

All in all, this is very good news for supporters of the treatment. In 2012, biomaterials dominated the regenerative medicine market by generating $2.6 billion in revenue, and the entire industry is expected to grow to $6.5 billion annually by 2019.