Intercytex Announces ICX-TRC Phase 2 Results
Release from Intercytex: PDF file
They still believe that this can be a marketable product, the question as an expert what do you make of this data? It does say that more data will be released later this year i’m presuming photos.
Our newest author on BaldingBlog, Dr. Bessam Farjo, is intimately familiar with Intercytex. The following response comes from him:
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 Response by:  Dr Bessam Farjo United Kingdom |
We finished following up the last volunteer of Phase II of the trial about 6 weeks ago, and the 1st set of analysis data have just been released. This trial was designed to examine the effect of different dermal papilla (the hair producing cells in the root) delivery techniques and methods to ensure that the epidermal (superficial skin layer) cells were in the correct state to respond to the signals and produce new hairs.
To recap, the point of the trial is to see if it is possible to create a limitless supply of donor hair and deliver results with very minimum of surgery. In each subject, an initial surgical harvest of around 100 hairs roots was performed, dermal papilla cells separated and then put in a proprietary culture medium for 8 weeks. In this medium the cells multiply extensively producing millions of ‘cloned’ DP cells.
Each volunteer was injected 900 times with the suspension containing the lab-grown DP cells in a large area which was photographed at the end of the study. Volunteers were also injected in a smaller area, divided into two halves – counts were obtained by shaving and photographing the two small halves of this small area of the scalp, injecting them multiple times (either 1 injection of 50 µl or 50 injections of 1 µl) with living DP cell suspension and then applying a specialized image analysis system to provide a total hair count. In these small sections, all 19 subjects in the trial were treated using a range of injection and scalp pre-stimulation techniques; the first 6 subjects were injected without stimulation of the scalp. In the remaining 13 subjects the resident hair producing (epithelial) cells were stimulated at the time of delivery of the DP cells in one of the two treatment sites. 13 subjects completed the 48-week trial with 6 subjects lost to follow-up. Of the 13 subjects completing the trial the data showed that:
- 65% (11/17) of the treated sites in the non-stimulated group responded to the treatment by increasing numbers of hairs of all sizes
- 71% (12/17) of the treated sites in the non-stimulated group responded to the treatment by increasing numbers of hairs over 30 microns in diameter
- 78% (7/9) of the treated sites in the stimulated group responded to the treatment by increasing numbers of hairs of all sizes
- 100% (9/9) of the treated sites in the stimulated group responded to the treatment by increasing numbers of hairs over 30 micron in diameter
- The overall take rate (number of hairs produced per 100 injections) in the stimulated areas was
- 40% (n=6) for hairs of all sizes
- 18% (n=6) for hairs over 30 microns in diameter
The larger (900 injection) area photographs have not yet been analysed. As a reference, hairs under 30 microns in diameter that grow less than 1 cm in length are vellus baby-like hairs, while terminal adult-like hairs are more than 30 microns in diameter and grow more than 1cm in length.
The data strongly suggests that new hair production is improved by pre-stimulation of the scalp. This is essentially a technique to cause a minor injury to the skin surface, leading to an interaction between the injected cells and the resident hair producing cells. The role of an injury or skin wound in hair growth in mice had first been established a year or two ago by Cotsarelis and his team.
From a clinical point of view, what we have learned is that when such a technique becomes an available commercial treatment, it can be a rapid and pain free procedure. Obviously local anesthetic will be used, but certainly 1000 injections can be performed in under an hour with post op pain almost non existent and scabbing very minimal.
Further studies are of course planned, but one exciting area that may point to the way of the future is the development of the so-called Proto-Hairs. Still in the lab stage for now, animal multiplied dermal papilla cells are developing terminal hairs in the lab dish. Once this is duplicated reliably in the human model and proved to work in a human trial, it may provide another alternative to the concept of cell therapy for hair loss.
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Learn more about the author of this article, Dr. Bessam Farjo, on his BaldingBlog profile or at his website.
From what I understand, a lot of new hair growth has to do with wounding the scalp. This procedure sounds relatively simple, so why is it taking so long and millions of dollars in research?
I can’t understand if this results are positive or not. Is it possible to make a prevision of a possible date of commercialization?
It’s a scam, nothing will never happen, icx is failed…bankruptcy…
I wish this was a little less jargony…
Trial results show that we have a treatment that really works?If so where is the rush?We are talking here about billions.How many “4-5 years” before we have a product?If Ixc is looking for a partnership where are the photos?Show a photo with good results and you will have a hundred multimillionaire potential partners in your office the next day.
These results look promising. A quick stats note – two stats you provided don’t make much sense:
78% (7/9) of the treated sites in the stimulated group responded to the treatment by increasing numbers of hairs of all sizes
100% (9/9) of the treated sites in the stimulated group responded to the treatment by increasing numbers of hairs over 30 micron in diameter
Perhaps these numbers are reversed? You would expect everyone who had hairs over 30 micron to have hairs of all sizes – not the other way around.
Your results are going to be highly scrutinized. Worth having someone grill your numbers.
Where are the photos? Everybody knows why you don’t show any photos…It’s a failure, a big failure. And don’t tell us within five years!!!
John… That’s what threw me off. I’m usually up for lots of scientific jargon and numbers lol. Those 2 numbers seem reversed and that confused me. :) Phew… I thought I was losing it for a minute there!
I’m wondering why there is so much pessimism–Do any of you have a more promising treatment option in development? I’d much rather persist with the current treatment methods with the hopes that something is in the pipeline than dismiss it all as fantasies created by an evil, mad doctor.
I’ve found that many of the posters on these sorts of sites are totally pessimistic. It’s probably due to the fact that they are so gutted about their hair loss they don’t want to get their hopes up about any potential new treatment so they will ‘write it off’ in their minds so that they can never be disappointed if it fails.
nothing can be done to prevent baldness, can it neither be stopped or will there ever be any future treatment for this blady hell problem.intercytex is a totall failure.all balding aspirants leave your hopes for future treatments.baldness is curse from god.
honest… i dont think there will be any f…. treatment before a billion years… sorry guys…
This fuc…. hairloss is our gift..
We cant give gim a way…’
Thoose idiots are allways saying 3-5 years for last couple hundreds years…
Instead of saying 3-5 years just work on that fuck… cell treatment and launch it… instead of getting our hope up and fall wery hard…
It’s hurt… now what i mean… huuuuuuuurt..
our fuck….. live is on hold for this…
why are you idiots killing us for…
Money?
Ok… i hope every person who earns money from this lying fuc… 3-5 years bullshit to have a problem with thier child… and the solution is allways 3-5 years…
maybe then they understand the situation we are in…
I’m tired to look at the web each they last 8 years..
we need it now like you idiots promised for five years ago, if you wasn’t sure, why the hell say 2009-2010 and fuck pu our lifes…..
like i sad… i hope people who earns money from this false promise to gain a disase in their family where the treatment is allways 5 fuc…. years…
I’ll hope it from deeeeeep in my heardt
I had this procedure done. didn’t work for me. I had the my scalp stimulated. I-E a graze on top off scalp and the cell’s injected. didnt work so dont get your hopes up. everything is kept secret so you dont no who its worked on.
Thank god none of you are scientists.
If you were, science will never produce anything.
The mere fact that Intercytex failed doesn’t mean there won’t be another company who will succeed in doing it.
If you don’t have anything positive to say, don’t say anything…