How strong is the evidence for stem-cell therapy in Anemia?
ClinicalTrials.gov registrations alone cannot establish how strong the evidence is. Registry activity is relatively mature, with multiple Phase 3/4 registrations: the registry holds 195 records, 82 completed, 14 at Phase 3 or 4, and 27 stopped early (14%). MSC-specific work accounts for 10 of those records. These counts describe research activity and maturity, not benefit, safety or certainty. Snapshot 2026-08-29.
What counts as a real result in Anemia
Relevant outcomes are engraftment, transfusion independence, graft-versus-host disease incidence and overall survival — hard, countable endpoints. That is precisely why claims about 'stem cells for anaemia' from clinics with no transplant unit should be read as marketing borrowing the credibility of a different specialty.
What we can say from registrations alone
- Volume: 195 registered studies since 1993.
- Maturity: 14 confirmatory-phase records.
- Delivery: 82 completed; 27 terminated, withdrawn or suspended.
- Scale: median planned enrolment 30 participants, largest 35,000.
The completed studies
Completed does not mean published, and published does not mean positive. These are the finished records — the starting point for checking whether results ever appeared.
| Study | Phase | Status | Planned n | Lead sponsor | Start |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCT00964821 — Flu Vaccine in Preventing Influenza Infection in Healthy Volunteers and in Patients Who Have Undergone Stem Cell Transplant | n/a | Completed | 459 | City of Hope Medical Center | 2007-01 |
| NCT00003816 — Combination Chemotherapy and Donor Stem Cell Transplant in Treating Patients With Aplastic Anemia or Hematologic Cancer | Phase 2, Phase 3 | Completed | 361 | Roswell Park Cancer Institute | 1998-10-19 |
| NCT00701844 — Sharing Our Strength: A Research Study for Bone Marrow/Stem Cell Transplant Survivors | n/a | Completed | 315 | University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill | 2007-07 |
| NCT00683046 — T-Cell Depleted Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation for Patients With Hematologic Malignancies | Phase 2 | Completed | 204 | University of Chicago | 2001-11 |
| NCT01010217 — Mismatched Transplantation Using High-dose Post-transplant Cyclophosphamide | Phase 2 | Completed | 176 | M.D. Anderson Cancer Center | 2009-11-05 |
| NCT02875743 — King's Invasive Aspergillosis Study II | Phase 4 | Completed | 120 | King's College Hospital NHS Trust | 2016-12-07 |
What registrations cannot tell you
Whether results were positive. Whether they were published at all — a large share of registered studies never report outcomes, which biases what the literature appears to show. And whether the product a commercial clinic sells resembles the product studied: cell source, dose, processing and delivery route vary enormously between a registered protocol and an off-protocol injection.
How to use this when someone is selling you a treatment
Ask which specific registered study supports the offer, then compare its intervention description with your quote. If the answer is a general gesture at "Anemia research", you are being sold the field's activity rather than evidence about the product. The Provider Question Builder turns that gap into questions.
Frequently asked
How strong is the evidence for stem-cell therapy in Anemia?
ClinicalTrials.gov registrations alone cannot establish how strong the evidence is. Registry activity is relatively mature, with multiple Phase 3/4 registrations: 195 registered records, 14 at Phase 3/4 and 27 stopped early (2026-08-29).
Has any stem-cell product been approved for this condition?
Look it up at source: regulators publish authorised products and indications. Registration of a trial, a licence to operate a clinic and product approval are three different things.
Why do clinics cite hundreds of studies?
Because the registry is public and impressive-looking. What it cannot show — published, controlled outcomes for the exact product — is the part that decides the question.
Registry and literature counts retrieved 2026-08-29 (ClinicalTrials.gov API v2; PubMed E-utilities). Registration or publication volume measures research activity, not effectiveness or approval. Educational information — not medical advice; verify product, indication, legal pathway and evidence with an independent qualified physician. Page generated 2026-08-29. See our editorial standards.