The FDA made a historic approval Dec. 8 when it cleared Casgevy, the nation's first medicine based on CRISPR gene-editing technology, as a treatment for sickle cell disease. Its makers are now working with hospitals to establish a network of specialized treatment centers, and so far nine have been authorized to deliver the treatment.
Federal regulators approved exagamglogene autotemcel, or exa-cel, marketed as Casgevy, to treat sickle cell disease in patients 12 and older. The one-time treatment is made by Vertex Pharmaceuticals and CRISPR Therapeutics and works by using CRISPR technology to remove the disease-causing gene from a patient's stem cells.
"The administration of Casgevy requires specialized experience in stem cell transplantation," Vertex said in a news release. "Therefore, Vertex is engaging with experienced hospitals to establish a network of independently operated, authorized treatment centers throughout the U.S. to offer Casgevy to patients."
Below is a list of hospitals that have been authorized to offer the treatment, with more expected to be added in the coming weeks:
Boston Medical Center
Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C.
City of Hope Children's Cancer Center in Los Angeles
Medical City Children's Hospital in Dallas
Methodist Children's Hospital in San Antonio
Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio
The Children's Hospital at TriStar Centennial in Nashville, Tenn.
The Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute in Columbus, Ohio
UChicago Medicine Comer Children's Hospital
Read more about the treatment and experts' reactions here.