Categoría: PATIENTS

There are nowadays many diseases for which there is still no effective treatment. In the case of certain of these, we are making some advances in their research to find a treatment using advanced therapy medicinal products (cell therapy, tissue engineering and gene therapy). The Andalusian Network for the design and translation of Advanced Therapies has as one of its main objectives to facilitate access to those therapies to the Andalusian population, on an equitable basis whilst guaranteeing their administration under the strictest legal requirements and the highest safety.

In general advanced therapy products are derived from cells or tissues which can come from the patient himself (known as autologous) or from other donors (allogeneic). These products are largely considered medicinal products and, therefore, their manufacturing must be carried out in specialized laboratories under strict quality and safety conditions. To manufacture these medicinal products, the Coordination Unit of the Andalusian Network for the design and translation of Advanced Therapies coordinates a network of laboratories distributed throughout Andalusia. Each of these laboratories is specialised in the manufacturing of one or more advanced therapy medicinal products, with the mission to be of service not only to the Andalusian Community but to the rest of the population as a whole.

The three ways through which access to these therapies is facilitated are as follows:

1. Clinical trials promoted by the Andalusian Network for the design and translation of Advanced Therapies.
2. Compassionate use of medicinal products in research.
3. Advanced therapy medicinal products incorporated in the National Health System’s portfolio of services.

Most advanced therapy medicinal products are currently in phase of research, as a matter of fact there are many clinical trials in which their safety and efficacy are being studied in patients with a variety of diseases. However, there are few drugs whose safety and efficacy have already been proved and, consequently, can be administered to patients not involved in clinical trials or have been authorised as compassionate use. The high number of patients who suffer from serious diseases and for which these kinds of therapies have been announced as a possible treatment, has led to the emergence of clinics and healthcare establishments offering these kinds of medicinal products without the corresponding authorisations and guarantees. Hence, the Andalusian Network for the design and translation of Advanced Therapies has the commitment to work to prevent any raise of false expectations and to help patients to avoid being object of fraud and, consequently, of undergoing treatments without adequate guarantees. In this mission, we collaborate with international scientific societies which aim to warn patients against the potential risks of undergoing unproven treatments. Further information in this link.