Japan holds 1st post-approval surgery with iPS cell sheets | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News

A hospital in Japan has conducted the first heart surgery using cardiac muscle cell sheets derived from induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, after the government approved the treatment in March.

NHK has learned that the procedure was carried out on Tuesday at Osaka Keisatsu Hospital in Osaka City.

The cardiac muscle cell sheet "RiHeart" became eligible for health insurance coverage in September after it was approved by the government.

The sheets were carried into the hospital in a temperature-controlled case at around 8:30 a.m. for the surgery. They were transplanted into a patient, who is in their 50s and has severe heart failure.

The surgery was completed in about an hour, and the patient is said to be in stable condition.

Hospital President Sawa Yoshiki, who was in charge of developing the sheets and who performed the operation, described the procedure as very smooth. He said this surgery is the first step, and that he hopes the treatment quickly spreads so it can help people who suffer from the same conditions even just a little.

The sheets received government approval with conditions. These include having their safety and efficacy verified through further surgeries.

The company that developed them aims to have them transplanted into 75 patients at about 20 medical facilities nationwide through 2033.