Long periods of follow-up may be necessary for gene therapies, particularly if and when the US Food and Drug Administration is willing to grant a company an accelerated approval for such a treatment, FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said.
Califf: Decades Of Follow-Up Necessary For Gene Therapy
FDA Commissioner Califf acknowledges that regulatory pathways for gene therapies are still being developed and that many factors outside of the modality impact agency requirements as he emphasized the need for long-term follow up due to the unknowns of gene modification.

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Cell and gene therapy manufacturers must consider the practicalities of their product within the context of a health care system before it comes onto the market to be successful, experts from Novartis, AstraZeneca and England’s National Health Service say.
A risk-based approach to human cell therapies and tissue-based products could incentivize development and prevent bad actors from taking advantage of the current FDA system.
Experts working in the advanced therapy space say the US has less strict criteria for regulatory pathways for cell and gene therapies than the EU, particularly for products in early development.
Not all companies will be able to access joint scientific consultations under the EU Health Technology Assessment Regulation, but success is still possible for those that engage with national agencies early on, says EUCOPE’s Alexander Natz.
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Experts working in the advanced therapy space say the US has less strict criteria for regulatory pathways for cell and gene therapies than the EU, particularly for products in early development.
US FDA Commissioner nominee Martin Makary is being embraced by industry, and Senate Democrats, as a more traditional pick than other Trump Administration nominees, but the Make America Healthy Again agenda still is clearly coming to the agency.
Not all companies will be able to access joint scientific consultations under the EU Health Technology Assessment Regulation, but success is still possible for those that engage with national agencies early on, says EUCOPE’s Alexander Natz.