Pluristem's PLX cells save cancer patient suffering bone marrow failure

Shares of Israel’s Pluristem Therapeutics (TASE: PLTR), a leading developer of placenta-based cell therapies, soared 22% to $4.04 on Monday after the biotech company announced that the life of a patient suffering from bone marrow failure in which there was a dangerous reduction in the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets (pancytopenia) has been saved using Placental eXpanded (PLX) cells.

This is the second time in the past three months that a patient suffering from bone marrow failure was successfully treated in a compassionate use treatment with PLX cells with a return of bone marrow function, the company noted.

The patient, a 54 year-old woman diagnosed with lymphoma cancer, was initially treated with chemotherapy. Her condition continued to deteriorate, necessitating a bone marrow transplant. The transplant, as well as alternate therapies, was not successful. As a result, the woman suffered from prolonged dangerous pancytopenia. PLX cells were then administered to the patient at the Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, under the Israeli government’s compassionate use program. Following the injection of the PLX cells intramuscularly (IM), the woman’s clinical condition and blood counts improved to the point where the patient was able to be released from the isolation unit and subsequently discharged from the hospital.