Hongkongers with spinal cord injuries may have a chance to regain mobility with the help of advanced therapy products developed by a new laboratory at Polytechnic University (PolyU), with clinical trials to start as soon as the facility is fully licensed.
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The scholar in charge of the laboratory said the institution hoped the facility could work in tandem with its proposed medical school to provide a one-stop shop for healthcare, ranging from treatment to rehabilitation, contributing to the city’s push to become a health and medical innovation hub.
PolyU is one of three local universities seeking to establish the city’s third medical school.
Professor Larry Chow Ming-cheung, head of the university’s applied biology and chemical technology department, said the advanced therapy products (ATPs) laboratory, which will be the third of its kind in Hong Kong once it is fully licensed, would allow patients greater access to cutting-edge treatments.
ATPs refer to medicines based on genes, cells or tissue. Examples include chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, which uses the patient’s modified T-cells to attack cancer cells.
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“Building a production line for ATPs is incredibly expensive for individual companies due to the stringent standards, but our laboratory can essentially attract biopharmaceutical companies to invest in Hong Kong by providing access to a ready-made production facility,” Chow said.