Caladrius Biosciences, a cell therapy company with a late-stage clinical program for immuno-oncology, has finalized its corporate name change from NeoStem to Caladrius.

“Coming on the heels of the recent $17.7 million grant awarded to us from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine in support of our currently enrolling phase III trial studying CLBS20, also known as NBS20, as a therapy for metastatic melanoma, our new identity as Caladrius Biosciences reflects our position as a leader in the innovation, development and manufacture of cell-based individualized medicine,” said Dr. David J. Mazzo, CEO of Caladrius.

Progenitor Cell Therapy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Caladrius and a single source cell therapy service provider, has been renamed PCT, a Caladrius company, also effective immediately, with no change to its focus on process development, engineering and manufacturing for clients across the cell therapy industry.

The product candidates in the company’s therapeutic pipeline will be referred to under new names.

• CLBS20, also known as NBS20, the company’s lead product candidate, currently enrolling in the Intus phase III trial for the treatment of metastatic melanoma;
• CLBS10, formerly NBS10, an ischemic repair treatment of damaged heart muscle after acute myocardial infarction in late phase II; and
• CLBS03, formerly NBS03D, which is poised to enter phase II in a study for the preservation of beta cell function in adolescents with type 1 diabetes.

In Roman mythology, the Caladrius is a bird that visits the ill and is said to be able to absorb patients’ illnesses and fly away, dispersing the illness and healing both itself and the patient. In that same spirit of recovery, Caladrius Biosciences is committed to its mission of bringing new, innovative and treatment paradigm-changing medical therapies to market, and in so doing, improving patients’ lives and creating value for its shareholders.