There’s a lot of reading material on the fact that Geron now has the FDA’s blessing to start a clinical trial for spinal cord injury using cells derived from embryonic stem cells. But some of the patients who have been waiting most eagerly for this announcement will be disappointed. The trial, which is expected to begin this summer, will only accept patients whose injuries occurred recently, within a week or two of the experimental treatment.

Coverage by Nature points out that other companies hoping to use embryonic stem cells for therapies are coaxing them into very different types of cells. It quotes Sean Tipton, former head of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research “This is a trial of one particular application, not a trial of all embryonic stem cells.”

The New York Times article explores the repercussions of what might happen if this trial disappoints or worse. (A topic Nature Reports covered more generally in Weighing risks and rewards on the way to the clinic.)

There is also an in-depth piece by Wise Young, the Rutgers neuroscientist who works tirelessly to investigate and explain emerging scientists to the spinal cord injury community. He puts the work leading up to the trial in context and then explains what it will mean for those already injured.

California Stem Cell Report’s David Jensen has a round-up of the coverage, with quotes from what he calls “not-so-ebullient views.” He also has posts on following Geron’s stocks, and a grateful note from a stem cell advocate.

In my first post announcing the trial, I included links to many of the questions raised as well as the context leading up to the trial.