1st public insurance-covered iPS heart sheet surgery conducted in Japan

A Japanese hospital on Tuesday conducted surgery to treat severe heart failure using a cardiac muscle sheet derived from induced pluripotent stem cells, making it the first such case since the regenerative therapy was allowed to be covered by public health insurance.

The procedure involving the iPS cell-derived cardiomyocyte patches called RiHeart finished "smoothly" at a hospital in Osaka, Cuorips Inc., the startup originating from the University of Osaka that developed the product, said. The patient is a female in her 50s from Kanagawa Prefecture, according to the company and hospital.