Under the able leadership of Ian McKenzie, Tony D’Apice and Megan Sykes, and in concert with TTS and WHO, IXA has promoted ethical and regulatory guidelines for clinical xenotransplantation trials for consideration by national regulatory authorities. The association has three important goals for the coming years:
- to facilitate implementation of internationally consistent national regulations for the conduct of clinical xenotransplant trials.
- to promote conduct of ethical clinical trials that are safe for the participants, minimize health risks for the public at large, and are likely to promote future success. Such trials should be based, to the greatest extent possible, on preclinical observations in nonhuman primate models that unequivocally indicate that efficacy is likely.
- to educate citizens around the world about the benefits, risks, and scientific hurdles to achieving the vast therapeutic potential of cross-species transplantation.