Joshua Hare, MD
FOUNDING DIRECTOR, UM INTERDISCIPLINARY STEM CELL INSTITUTE (ISCI); CO-FOUNDER AND CHIEF SCIENCE OFFICER OF LONGEVERON
“Human beings are of course obsessed with how long we live, but it really is about the quality of life that we live.”
Dr. Joshua M. Hare, MD, is one of the leading stem cell research scientists in the world. As founding director of the University of Miami’s ISCI, Dr. Hare has been a leader in the quest to develop new therapies for regenerative medicine. Renowned for his early work in rebuilding damaged heart tissue, he is now moving into the world of applied medicine with Longeveron, a cutting-edge company backed with National Institute of Health grants that has licensed his UM research to use stem cells to combat the frailty that comes with aging.
LATEST ACHIEVEMENT
Recently addressed the prestigious World Stem Cell Summit in Miami on “Trends in Biotechnology Research Aimed at Extending Healthy Lifespan,” which he dubbed as “How to stay healthy to 120 years of age.” He has completed successful Phase II clinical trials on using stem cells to reverse aging frailty, and is currently recruiting subjects for clinical trials on the use of stem cells to treat Alzheimer’s patients.
WHAT HE SAYS
"Longevity is increasing, inevitably,” he says. “I think it is the goal of the medical profession not necessarily to enhance longevity, but to enhance the quality of life during the aging process." Dr. Hare points out that the last decade of life for most Americans is typically beset by disabilities. “Even though we are living longer, the last part of our lives is not particularly good,” he says. “We want to improve health span.” As for increasing life span, Dr. Hare says that most deaths are due to diseases (think heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s) ultimately caused by chronic inflammation, loss of immunological function, and loss of stem cells, all of which can be improved by infusing patients with new stem cells. “It is for this reason that we hypothesize that [stem cells] might address these [causes of death], because they modulate the immune the system and could replenish the source of endogenous stem cells.”
Photo by Lizzie Wilcox
