103861CellFuse: A Regenerative Medicine Product for Enhanced Spinal Fusion in Diabetic PatientsClosedCollaborative R&DInnovate UKThis project aims to develop a new surgical product that will cure diabetic patients of a specific type of severe back pain. When the backbone is damaged or deteriorates due to disease and aging, chronic pain can result due to a loss of elasticity and protection in the disc structure. One clincial treatment that is offered is to fuse the affected segments of the backbone to restrict movement and stop the pain. This fusion requires the surgeon to implant a material close to the main back bone. The material encourages new bone to form, and that bone creates a permanent bridge that stabilises the backbone in one specific segment. The most common treatment option is to move living bone from the patient's own hip into the area next to the backbone. This is called autografting. This is a very successful procedure for most patients but is far less successful for patients with diabetes (both insulin dependent and independent). The process appears to be less successful for diabetics because the bone tissue forming stem cells are less active. Our company has technologies to overcome these problems. The product is called CellFuse and it includes a method of priming the stem cells to grow faster and to create bone more quickly. This is combined with a simple to use adminsitration system that ensures these primed cells stay at the site of action. We will aim to prove that our new concept works for diabetic patient cells and within 2 years we will be ready for clinical trials in humans using a medicine manufactured in the UK.