Health
Leukemia patient receives first-ever bone marrow transplant from deceased organ donor
Bone marrow transplants can be life-saving for patients suffering from certain types of cancer, blood disorders and other diseases — but for many patients, finding a match can take months or years.
Each year, roughly 18,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with potentially fatal diseases that could be successfully treated with donated bone marrow.
To help increase the chances of these patients getting life-saving treatment, the bioengineering company Ossium Health has created a program that offers deep-frozen bone marrow from deceased organ donors.
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Earlier this year, after an unsuccessful four-month search for a matching donor, a 68-year-old Michigan woman became the first patient to receive a bone marrow transplant from an unrelated organ donor for blood cancer treatment.
Each year, roughly 18,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with potentially fatal diseases that could be successfully treated with donated bone marrow. (iStock)
The patient, who was suffering from acute myeloid leukemia, received the transplant at Henry Ford Health in Detroit, Michigan. She is now “rapidly recovering,” according to doctors.
“We were nervous about it because there was no precedence of using a bone marrow from a cadaver,” Muneer Abidi, M.D., a hematologist at Henry Ford Health who led the clinical trials for Ossium’s bone marrow product, told Fox News Digital during a phone conversation.
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“So there was a little bit of apprehension and anxiety, but we were pleasantly surprised and happy when she robustly recovered her [stem cell] count, very similar to the anticipated time duration for a normal, healthy donor.”
Bone marrow barriers
Bone marrow transplant is the final-line treatment for blood cancer patients, according to Kevin Caldwell, the CEO of Ossium Health.
In the current health care system, a blood cancer patient who needs a bone marrow transplant has to find a healthy living volunteer who is a close enough match.
“We were nervous about it because there was no precedence of using a bone marrow from cadaver.”
“Unlike many other organs, which you can just take from one person and transplant into pretty much anyone else who’s a similar size, the bone marrow must be very closely genetically matched,” Caldwell said during a conversation with Fox News Digital.
And the process isn’t easy, he noted.
“The donor has to be ready, willing and able to provide bone marrow for a complete stranger, to have their hip drilled into, and their bone marrow aspirated out or their stem cells mobilized — taking several days off of work and making a meaningful sacrifice to benefit someone they’ve never met,” Caldwell said.
The bioengineering company Ossium Health has created a new program that offers deep-frozen bone marrow from deceased organ donors. (Ossium Health)
There is also the challenge of timing.
“It can take months to find someone who’s healthy enough and willing to donate, and is a genetic match — and those are months that these blood cancer patients often don’t have,” Caldwell said.
About 55% of blood cancer patients successfully receive a transplant, he noted. The other 45% don’t, and most of those won’t survive.
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Another widespread issue is that it’s difficult to find a fully matched donor for minorities, especially African-Americans, according to Abidi.
“The problem worsened during COVID,” he told Fox News Digital.
Meeting the need
To help address these issues, Ossium Health developed a bank of bone marrow that is derived from organ donors.
“We’ve built a network of 27 organ procurement organizations around the United States that manage organ donation, obtain consent and do the recoveries,” Caldwell said.
Ossium has launched a clinical trial — called PRESERVE I — that provides bone marrow to acute leukemia patients who need an allogeneic (genetically similar) transplant. (Ossium Health)
“We’ve trained them on how to recover the bone marrow, and then we built the facility where we process and manufacture the doses for the patients, and we cryopreserve it there on site.”
The goal, Caldwell said, is for bone marrow to be recovered and donated just as other organs — like hearts, livers, lungs, kidneys, corneas and skin — have been for decades.
“Before Ossium, the bone marrow from these donors — the life-saving stem cells that are present in the vertebral bodies of these donors — was not being used,” Caldwell said.
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“It would be discarded despite the fact that these people had consented to organ donation.”
Ossium has launched a clinical trial — called PRESERVE I — that provides bone marrow to acute leukemia patients who need an allogeneic (genetically similar) transplant.
The Michigan woman, the first patient to be enrolled in the trial, received her transplant in May 2024 through Ossium’s HOPE Program.
The end goal, said Ossium’s CEO, is to “dramatically expand” the pool of bone marrow stem cells from deceased organ donors to help fight cancer. (iStock)
“Today, she’s alive and well and on a great recovery trajectory from her blood cancer, because we had a bone marrow unit that could match her and save her life,” Caldwell said.
“This case exemplifies the importance of this new option for patients with urgent needs.”
Benefits of cryopreserved bone marrow
There are several advantages of using bone marrow from deceased donors, Caldwell said — the biggest one being that much more of the organ can be used.
“Our donors don’t need their bone marrow anymore, so we’re able to recover much more of it than we could ever ethically take from a living person who still needs their bone marrow to live,” he said.
On average, they are able to get two to five times as many cells from an organ donor than from a living person, according to Caldwell.
“Our donors don’t need their bone marrow anymore, so we’re able to recover much more of it than we could ever ethically take from a living person.”
“That may mean that we can do multiple transplants from one donor and save multiple lives.”
In other cases, they may be able to provide a larger dose of stem cells, which improves patient outcomes.
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“For the first time ever, the doctor has a choice about what dose he or she wants to give to their patient — similar to when they’re deciding a dosage when prescribing a medication,” Caldwell told Fox News Digital.
The immediate availability is also a major benefit, Abidi added.
“The product is already available and collected, and we know exactly where it is stored,” he said.
Ossium built the facility where they process and manufacture doses of bone marrow for patients, and cryopreserve it there on site.” (Ossium Health)
“When we approach a healthy donor, it can take up to three months or longer from start to finish — but in this case, if we have a donor match identified in the inventory, the product can practically be shipped to us the next day.”
For patients with leukemias and other aggressive diseases, this immediate availability can mean the difference between life and death, Abidi said.
Consent and regulation
The donors on Ossium’s platform are “double-consented,” according to Caldwell.
The first step is for a person to agree to be an organ donor, which typically happens at the DMV.
Approximately 170 million people are registered to be donors, according to the Health Resources & Services Administration.
Ossium also follows a second consent process after the donor’s death.
“We also get consent from the family, to confirm that their loved one would like to provide these organs,” Caldwell said. “In the vast majority of times, the family members will honor that decision.”
Approximately 170 million people are registered to be donors, according to the Health Resources & Services Administration. (iStock)
Because the cryopreserved bone marrow is not a drug — and not significantly different from living donor bone marrow — it is not subject to approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Caldwell said.
“The FDA does not regulate bone marrow transplants from living donors — they consider those to be just like organ transplants,” he said.
After finalizing its product and facility, Ossium sent the process and data to the FDA, which confirmed that its oversight was not required.
“But we’re doing the studies anyway, to produce a data set that will empower bone marrow transplant doctors to use this product for their patients,” Caldwell said.
Looking ahead
Since the first transplant for the patient in Michigan, a second one was performed in Utah, and many more are planned, Caldwell said.
“We’re really excited about the outcomes from these first couple of patients,” he said.
Ossium now plans to publish the data to help boost enrollment in the clinical trials.
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The end goal, Caldwell said, is to “dramatically expand” the pool of bone marrow stem cells from deceased organ donors to help fight cancer.
“Leukemia is a treatable cancer if you are able to find a donor in time,” Caldwell said.
“We don’t want anyone to die because of a logistical problem.”
“We don’t want anyone to die because of a logistical problem. We want to achieve a world where virtually everyone who needs a bone marrow transplant can get one.”
While Ossium’s platform is currently focused on treating blood cancers, there are other ways it could benefit patients in the future, Caldwell said.
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“There are many other applications of having a clinical bank of stem cells available, including doing organ transplants without immunosuppression and preventing organ rejection,” he said.
Added Abidi, “As more data becomes available to show the safety in larger number of patients and donors, this certainly is going to be a very nice addition.”
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Collagen supplements have exploded in popularity, touted as everything from an anti-aging miracle to a muscle recovery booster.
But a sweeping new review conducted by U.K. researchers suggests that while collagen may help improve skin elasticity and ease arthritis pain, it does little for athletic performance or wrinkle reduction.
Researchers from Anglia Ruskin University analyzed 16 systematic reviews and 113 randomized controlled trials involving nearly 8,000 participants worldwide, which they say is the most extensive evaluation of collagen’s health effects to date.
The review found consistent evidence that collagen supplementation improves skin elasticity and hydration over time and provides significant relief from osteoarthritis-related joint pain and stiffness, according to findings published in Aesthetic Surgery Journal Open Forum.
A large U.K. review found that collagen supplements may improve skin elasticity and hydration over time. (iStock)
The researchers, however, did not find meaningful improvements in post-exercise muscle recovery, soreness or tendon mechanical properties (strength, springiness and stretch resistance).
“Collagen is not a cure-all, but it does have credible benefits when used consistently over time, particularly for skin and osteoarthritis,” co-author Lee Smith, professor of public health at Anglia Ruskin University, said in a statement.
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“Our findings show clear benefits in key areas of healthy aging, while also dispelling some of the myths surrounding its use,” Smith added.
Collagen, the most abundant protein in the body, supports skin, bones, tendons, cartilage and connective tissue, according to experts. Natural collagen production begins to drop in early adulthood and declines more sharply with age.
The study found that collagen supplements may help reduce joint pain and stiffness in people with osteoarthritis. (iStock)
The review found that long-term collagen supplementation was linked to improved skin firmness and hydration, but did not help skin roughness — a proxy for visible wrinkles.
Benefits appear to accumulate gradually, suggesting that collagen should not be viewed as an “anti-wrinkle ‘quick fix,’ but as a foundational dermal support for individuals seeking holistic skin maintenance,” the researchers said.
“If we define anti-aging as a product or technique designed to prevent the appearance of getting older, then I believe our findings do support this claim for some parameters,” Smith told the BBC. “For example, an improvement in skin tone and moisture is associated with a more youthful-looking appearance.”
Collagen supplementation was linked to reduced pain and stiffness in people with osteoarthritis, with stronger benefits seen over longer periods of use, and showed modest improvements in muscle mass and tendon structure that may support healthy aging.
Collagen did not significantly improve skin roughness, a marker of visible wrinkles. (iStock)
However, it did not show meaningful results when used as a fast-acting sports performance supplement, and evidence for benefits related to cholesterol, blood sugar, blood pressure and oral health was mixed or inconclusive.
Dr. Daniel Ghiyam, a California-based physician and longevity specialist, said the findings align with what he sees in clinical practice.
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“Collagen is a targeted support tool, not a foundation of health or performance,” Ghiyam, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital. “When marketed that way, it makes sense. When marketed as a cure-all, it doesn’t hold up to the data.”
The authors noted that while many previous collagen studies have received financial support from the supplement industry, the current review did not receive industry funding.
Experts say collagen supplements may offer modest benefits for skin hydration and joint comfort, but they are not a cure-all. (iStock)
The team called for more high-quality clinical trials examining long-term outcomes, optimal dosages and differences between collagen sources, such as marine, bovine and plant-based alternatives.
Among its limitations, the review could not determine whether certain forms of collagen work better than others or what the optimal regimen should be.
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While the review included randomized controlled trials, the quality of the studies varied, with newer research generally showing stronger results.
Experts say more data and studies are needed to build on the findings. They also noted that diet plays a crucial role in skin health.
Collagen supplements, often sold as powders or pills, may improve skin elasticity and ease joint pain, experts say. (iStock)
Dr. Erum Ilyas, a Pennsylvania-based dermatologist and chair of dermatology at Drexel University College of Medicine, noted that the review analyzed previously published meta-analyses rather than generating new primary data.
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“At this time, I have not seen sufficiently strong independent evidence to routinely recommend collagen supplements to my patients,” Ilyas, who was not involved in the review, told Fox News Digital.
“Although some studies show modest improvements in markers such as hydration and elasticity, there remains limited independent, biopsy-confirmed evidence demonstrating sustained increases in dermal collagen content,” she added.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the researchers for comment.
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As colorectal cancer (CRC) is now the leading cause of cancer death in adults under 50, a new report reveals some surprising shifts in the incidence of the disease.
Although rates of CRC have been declining among seniors, those 65 and under are facing a rise in diagnoses, according to a report titled Colorectal Cancer Statistics, 2026, from the American Cancer Society.
Adults 65 and younger comprise nearly half (45%) of all new colorectal cancer cases — a significant increase from 27% in 1995, states the report, which was published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.
The disease is rising fastest among adults 20 to 49 years old, at a rate of 3% per year.
Colorectal cancer is now the leading cause of cancer death in adults under 50. (iStock)
Among adults 50 and under, 75% of colorectal cancers are diagnosed at an advanced stage. Half of the diagnoses in that age range are made between the ages of 45 and 49. Although that age group is eligible to receive routine screenings, just 37% do so.
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The report also revealed that rectal cancer is on the rise, now accounting for about one-third (32%) of all CRC cases — an increase from 27% in the mid-2000s.
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“After decades of progress, the risk of dying from colorectal cancer is climbing in younger generations of men and women, confirming a real uptick in disease because of something we’re doing or some other exposure,” said Rebecca Siegel, senior scientific director, surveillance research at the American Cancer Society and lead author of the report, in a press release.
Among adults 50 and under, 75% of colorectal cancers are diagnosed at an advanced stage. Half of the diagnoses in that age range are made between the ages of 45 and 49. (iStock)
“We need to redouble research efforts to understand the cause, but also circumvent deaths through earlier detection by educating clinicians and the general public about symptoms and increasing screening in people 45-54 years.”
It is projected that 158,850 new cases of colorectal cancer will be diagnosed this year, and that the disease will cause 55,230 deaths, per the report.
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More than half of CRC cases can be linked to high-risk behaviors, the researchers said. Those include lack of nutrition, high alcohol consumption, smoking, lack of exercise and obesity.
“These findings further underscore that colorectal cancer is worsening among younger generations and highlight the immediate need for eligible adults to begin screening at the recommended age of 45,” said Dr. William Dahut, chief scientific officer at the American Cancer Society.
When the disease is caught at a local (early) stage, the five-year survival rate is 95%. (iStock)
“The report also shines a light on the crucial importance of continued funding for research to help discover new therapies to treat the disease and advance patient care.”
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When the disease is caught at a local (early) stage, the five-year survival rate is 95%, the report stated.
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A new study suggests that middle-aged men may be more vulnerable to faster biological aging, potentially linked to exposure to “forever chemicals.”
The research, published in the journal Frontiers in Aging, examined how perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, more commonly known as PFAS, could impact aging at the cellular level.
PFAS are synthetic chemicals commonly used in nonstick cookware, food packaging, water-resistant fabrics and other consumer products, the study noted.
Their chemical structure makes them highly resistant to breaking down, allowing them to accumulate in water, soil and the human body.
Chinese researchers analyzed blood samples from 326 adults enrolled in the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 1999 and 2000.
A new study suggests that middle-aged men could face accelerated biological aging at the cellular level due to exposure to PFAS. (iStock)
The researchers measured levels of 11 PFAS compounds in participants’ blood and used DNA-based “epigenetic clocks” — tools that analyze chemical changes to DNA to estimate biological age — to determine how quickly their bodies were aging at the cellular level, the study stated.
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Two compounds, perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorooctanesulfonamide (PFOSA), were detected in 95% of participants.
Higher concentrations of those chemicals were associated with faster biological aging in men of certain age groups, but not in women.
“People should not panic.”
The compounds most strongly linked to accelerated aging were not the PFAS chemicals that typically receive the most public attention, the researchers noted.
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“The associations were strongest in adults aged 50 to 64, particularly in men,” Dr. Xiangwei Li, professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine and the study’s corresponding author, told Fox News Digital.
“While this does not establish that PFAS cause aging, it suggests that these widely present ‘forever chemicals’ may be linked to molecular changes related to long-term health and aging.”
The study found that two of the compounds were detected in 95% of participants, and higher levels were linked to faster biological aging in men ages 50–64. (iStock)
Midlife may represent a more sensitive biological period, when the body becomes more vulnerable to age-related stressors, according to the researchers.
Lifestyle factors, such as smoking, may influence biological aging markers, potentially increasing vulnerability to environmental pollutants.
While Li said “people should not panic,” she does recommend looking for reasonable ways to reduce exposure.
That might mean checking local drinking water reports, using certified water filters designed to reduce PFAS, and limiting the use of stain- or grease-resistant products when alternatives are available.
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Meaningful reductions in PFAS exposure will likely depend on broader regulatory action and environmental cleanup efforts, Li added.
The researchers noted that midlife could be a particularly sensitive stage, when the body is more susceptible to stressors associated with aging. (iStock)
Study limitations
The researchers outlined several important limitations of the research, including that the findings show an association, but do not prove that PFAS directly causes accelerated aging.
“The study is cross-sectional, meaning exposure and aging markers were measured at the same time, so we cannot determine causality,” Li told Fox News Digital.
The study was also relatively small, limited to 326 adults age 50 or older, which means the findings may not apply to younger people or broader populations.
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Researchers measured PFAS levels using data collected between 1999 and 2000, and today’s exposure patterns may differ.
Li added that while PFAS is known to persist in the environment and the body, these results should be validated through larger, more recent studies that follow participants over time.
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