English Español

Terms of Use

Last Revised: December 7, 2010

The International Society for Stem Cell Research provides this Site, A Closer Look at Stem Cell Treatments, www.closerlookatstemcells.org, to help patients, their families and doctors learn more about stem cell research and treatments. The ISSCR plans to update this Site over time and to develop additional resources about stem cell treatments.

ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS OF USE ("TERMS")
YOUR USE OF AND BROWSING OF THE SITE AND ITS CONTENTS ARE SUBJECT TO ALL TERMS AND CONDITIONS CONTAINED HEREIN AND ALL APPLICABLE LAWS AND REGULATIONS.  BEFORE USING THIS SITE, PLEASE READ THIS AGREEMENT CAREFULLY.  BY ACCESSING AND USING SITE, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ, UNDERSTOOD AND AGREED TO BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS AS IF YOU HAD SIGNED THEM.  IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THESE TERMS OF USE, DO NOT ACCESS OR USE THE SITE OR ANY OF ITS CONTENT, AND YOUR PERMISSION TO ACCESS OR USE THE SITE IS AUTOMATICALLY AND IMMEDIATELY REVOKED.

These Terms may be revised or updated by the ISSCR from time to time. You should check the Terms regularly for updates. You can determine when the Terms were last revised by referring to the "Last Revised" legend at the top of this page. Any changes in these Terms take effect upon posting and will only apply to use of the Site after that date. Each time you access, use or browse the Site, you signify your acceptance of the then-current Terms.

DISCLAIMER
Please review the Disclaimer for the Site. If you do not agree with the Disclaimer, you may not use the Site.

PRIVACY POLICY
Please review the Privacy Policy for the Site. If you do not agree with the Privacy Policy, you may not use the Site.

PERMITTED USERS OF SITE
The Site is provided for persons 18 years of age or older, who are the age of majority in the jurisdiction of their residence.

Children
The Site is not directed to children under 13 years of age nor does the ISSCR knowingly collect information from children under age 13. If you are under age 13, you are not permitted to submit any personally identifiable information to the Site. If you are under 18 years of age, you may browse the Site but you may not submit any personal information to the Site.

PERMITTED USE OF SITE
The content available through the Site (the "Content") is the sole and exclusive property of the ISSCR and/or its licensors. You agree not to reproduce, duplicate, copy, sell, resell or exploit for any commercial purpose, any portion of the Site or the Content other than as expressly authorized by the ISSCR in writing. Use of the Site or the Content in any way not expressly permitted by these Terms is prohibited, and may be actionable under United States or international law.

So long as you agree and comply with the Terms, and unless these Terms are otherwise terminated or revised by the ISSCR, you are permitted to view, use and print portions of the Site and the Content solely for your own purposes; provided, however, that you may not duplicate, publish, modify, distribute, perform or create derivative works from any part of the Site or the Content unless expressly authorized by the ISSCR in writing.  You agree that you will not remove or modify any acknowledgements, credits or legal notices contained on the Site or in the Content.

You agree not to access the Site by any means other than through a standard web browser. You agree not to access the Site through automated means. You further agree that you will not damage, disable, overburden or impair the Site or interfere with any other party's use and enjoyment of it.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
You hereby acknowledge and agree that, as between the ISSCR and you, all right, title, and interest in and to the Site and the Content, including without limitation any patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, inventions, know-how, and all other intellectual property rights and all text, images, graphics, icons, media, software, data and information, are owned exclusively by the ISSCR or its licensors and are protected by United States intellectual property and other applicable laws.

The trademarks and logos used in connection with the Site are trademarks of the ISSCR and/or its licensors. Unauthorized use of any the ISSCR trademark, service mark or logo may be a violation of trademark or other laws. Any third party names or trademarks referenced in the Site do not constitute or imply affiliation with, endorsement, or recommendation of the ISSCR by the respective trademark owners, or by ISSCR of the respective trademark owners.

YOUR INDEMNITY OF THE ISSCR
YOU AGREE TO INDEMNIFY, DEFEND AND HOLD THE ISSCR, ITS MEMBERS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, SERVICE PROVIDERS AND OTHERS ACTING IN CONCERT WITH IT, HARMLESS FROM ANY LOSS, LIABILITY, CLAIM OR DEMAND, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION REASONABLE ATTORNEYS' FEES, ON YOUR BEHALF OFOR MADE BY ANY THIRD PARTY DUE TO OR ARISING OUT OF (A) YOUR CONNECTION OR SUBMISSION TO OR USE OF THE SITE OR THE CONTENT; OR (B) YOUR VIOLATION OF THESE TERMS, ANY APPLICABLE LAWS, OR THE RIGHTS OF THE ISSCR OR ANY THIRD PARTY.

LINKS
Links to Other Websites and Search Results
The Site may contain links to websites operated by other parties. The ISSCR provides these links to other websites as a convenience, and your use of these sites is at your own risk. The linked sites are not under the control of the ISSCR, and the ISSCR is not responsible for the content available on these third party sites. Such links do not imply the ISSCR's endorsement of information or material on any other site, or endorsement of the ISSCR by any other site or entity.  The ISSCR disclaims all liability with regard to your access to and use of such linked websites. You acknowledge and agree that the ISSCR shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage, loss or other claim caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with, access to, use of or reliance on any content available on or through any other site or resource.

Links to the Site
Unless otherwise set forth in a written agreement between you and the ISSCR, you may link to the Site subject to the ISSCR's linking policy as follows: (i) the appearance, position and other aspects of any link may not be such as to damage or dilute the reputation of the ISSCR; (ii) the appearance, position and other attributes of the link may not create the false appearance that your organization or entity is sponsored by, affiliated with, or associated with the ISSCR; (iii) when selected by a user, the link must display the Site on full-screen and not within a "frame" on the linking website; and (iv) the ISSCR reserves the right to revoke its consent to the link at any time and in its sole discretion.

MODIFICATIONS TO SITE
The ISSCR reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Site, or any portion thereof, with or without notice. You agree that the ISSCR shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension, or discontinuance of the Site.

SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION RIGHTS
The ISSCR reserves the right, at its sole discretion, immediately and without notice, to suspend or terminate your access to the Site for any reason, including without limitation any breach by you of these Terms. You agree that the ISSCR shall not be liable to you or any third party for any such suspension or termination.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES
THE SITE AND THE CONTENT ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE ISSCR MAKES NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY AS TO AND HAS NO RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, AVAILABILITY, TIMELINESS OR RELIABILITY OF THE SITE OR ANY CONTENT AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR VERIFYING ANY INFORMATION BEFORE RELYING ON IT. YOU ASSUME ALL RISKS OF USING THE SITE AND ITS CONTENT.  YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR TAKING ALL NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS TO ENSURE THAT ANY CONTENT YOU MAY OBTAIN FROM THE SITE IS FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL CODE.

The ISSCR does not represent that the Site, or the server that makes it available, is free of viruses or other harmful components. By use of this Site, you assume the entire cost of any necessary servicing, repair or correction of your equipment or property. The ISSCR assumes no responsibility, and shall not be liable for, any damages to, or viruses that may infect, your computer equipment or property as a result of your access to, use of or browsing in the Site.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE ISSCR DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE), STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, AND FURTHER DISCLAIMS ALL LOSSES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH ACCESS TO OR USE OF THE SITE OR ANY CONTENT, EVEN IF THE ISSCR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THE ISSCR'S AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THESE TERMS SHALL NOT EXCEED FIFTY DOLLARS (U.S.).

Exclusions and Limitations
Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or the limitation or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages. Accordingly, some of the above limitations may not apply to you. This Limitation of Liability shall be to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law.

GOVERNING LAW AND DISPUTES
These Terms shall be governed by, and will be construed under, the laws of the State of Illinois, U.S.A., without regard to choice of law principles. Those who choose to access the Site from locations outside of the United States do so on their own initiative, and are responsible for compliance with local laws if and to the extent local laws are applicable. You irrevocably agree to the exclusive jurisdiction by the federal and state courts located in or for Cook County, in the State of Illinois, U.S.A., to settle any dispute which may arise out of, under, or in connection with these Terms, as the most convenient and appropriate for the resolution of disputes concerning these Terms, the Site or its Content. Any cause of action or claim you may have with respect to these Terms or the ISSCR, the Site or its Content must be commenced within six (6) months after the claim or cause of action arises or such claim or cause of action shall be barred.

The Site is controlled within the United States of America. The ISSCR does not represent that the Site or Content are appropriate outside the United States of America. You acknowledge and agree that you access the Site of your own volition and are responsible for compliance with applicable local laws.

FORCE MAJEURE
The ISSCR shall not be liable for any delay or failure to perform resulting from causes outside the reasonable control of the ISSCR, including without limitation any failure to perform hereunder due to unforeseen circumstances or causes beyond the ISSCR's control such as acts of nature or God, fire, flood, earthquake, accidents, strikes, war, terrorism, governmental act, failure of common carriers (including without limitation Internet service providers and web hosting providers), or shortages of transportation facilities, fuel, energy, labor or materials.

CONTACT
Please direct any questions you may have about these Terms, technical questions or problems with the Site, or comments or suggestions to the ISSCR at stemcelltreatments@isscr.org.

MISCELLANEOUS
If any provision of the Terms is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties' intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of the Terms shall remain in full force and effect. Headings are for reference only and in no way define, limit, construe or describe the scope or extent of such section. The ISSCR's failure to act with respect to any failure by you or others to comply with these Terms does not waive the ISSCR's right to act with respect to subsequent or similar failures. These Terms set forth the entire understanding and agreement between you and the ISSCR with respect to the subject matter hereof. You may not assign or transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms without the prior written consent of the ISSCR, and any assignment or transfer in violation of this provision shall be null and void. There are no third party beneficiaries to these Terms.

QUESTIONS?
If you have any questions about these Terms of Use or the Site, please contact the ISSCR at stemcelltreatments@isscr.org.

---

Disclaimer

Last Revised: December 7, 2010

BY USING THIS SITE, YOU AGREE TO AND ACCEPT THE FOLLOWING DISCLAIMER. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO AND ACCEPT THE FOLLOWING DISCLAIMER, YOU ARE NOT AUTHORIZED TO USE THIS SITE.

Service to the Public; Not a Substitute for Medical Advice
The ISSCR provides this Site and its Content as a service to the public, patients, their families, physicians, other caregivers, and the scientific and regulatory community. This Site is intended to be informational only and should be used together with information from other sources and in consultation with professional medical advisers. These materials should not be considered as, or as a substitute for, medical advice or consultation. Because the materials included here are general, they may not apply to an individual's specific situation. You should not take (or refrain from taking) any action based on the information you obtain from these materials without first consulting your physician or medical team. The ISSCR encourages readers to discuss the information provided here and available from other sources with a trusted medical professional who knows the patient's personal circumstances. The information provided by the ISSCR cannot address the complexities of an individual medical decision.

No Approval of Clinics; No Governmental Authority
In receiving submissions about clinics and providing designations of clinics based on the stated criteria, the ISSCR seeks to provide an objective minimum level of transparency into the clinic's position on ethical and regulatory oversight. The ISSCR's efforts are not a means of determining whether a specific treatment is or is not scientifically based, safe or effective in any particular situation. The ISSCR does not 'approve' clinics, nor judge the degree of relative safety or efficacy of therapies, and has no authority to do so. The ISSCR relies on information provided by third parties to bring clinics to its attention, and does not purport to consider all clinics. The ISSCR attempts in good faith to apply objective criteria based on the information then available to it. The ISSCR has no regulatory or other authority over any clinic and cannot require a clinic to provide or supplement information.

No Endorsement or Disapproval
The information provided by the ISSCR about clinics does not endorse or disapprove any clinic that does or does not appear on the Site.  No conclusions should be drawn from a clinic's absence from the Site.  The designations provided by the ISSCR only indicate whether a clinic to which the ISSCR posed an inquiry (1) did not provide a reasonably adequate response to meet the elements stated by the ISSCR; (2) did provide a reasonably adequate response to meet the elements stated by the ISSCR; or (3) provided materials in response to the ISSCR's request, but review is pending resolution of language barriers.  The elements stated by the ISSCR are: (a) evidence of the involvement of a medical ethics committee to protect the rights of patients; and (b) evidence of oversight by a supranational or national regulatory authority such as the European Medicines Agency (EMA) or the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). There is significant global diversity in what may be approved or exempted by a regulatory agency, and what processes and standards are applied during review.  The regulatory standards in one jurisdiction may differ from those in another jurisdiction.

No Independent Research or Evaluation
The ISSCR does not independently research clinics or treatments, but relies on information provided or not provided to it by clinics brought to its attention. The ISSCR will review information provided by the clinic for responsiveness to the elements described above. The ISSCR may make reasonable efforts to contact the requestor, clinic or regulatory agency.  The ISSCR also invites the clinics to which it poses an inquiry to submit publications relevant to the stem cell treatments they offer. Publications must meet the ISSCR's stated criteria: (a) peer-reviewed; (b) include data of direct relevance to the specific disease in question; (c) include results, methodologies and conclusions; (d) written in English; and (e) inclusion in the MEDLINE database.  The ISSCR may post up to two submitted publications meeting these criteria on the Site.  The publications do not affect the outcome of the designations provided by the ISSCR and are intended only to provide additional information and to assist readers in identifying the scientific evidence regarding specific treatments.  The ISSCR does not verify nor vouch for, and is not responsible for, any information or publications provided by a clinic or claims made by a clinic.
 
International Scope; English Language
The ISSCR will review clinics located anywhere in the world based on the stated criteria. When possible, the ISSCR asks that the requested materials be provided in English.  While the ISSCR will have some capacity to review requested materials that are submitted in other languages, we cannot guarantee our capacity to review materials in all languages.  If the requested materials are submitted in a language other than English and the ISSCR is not able to review the materials in that language, the entity and that treatment/condition will be appended to the listings with the following notation:  'Materials received in response to the ISSCR's request. Review is pending resolution of language barriers'.  If the ISSCR subsequently gains capacity in that language or the entity later submits the requested documents in English, we will review the materials and reevaluate the listing at that time.  In this event we will notify the entity of our reevaluation.

Excluded Treatments
The ISSCR will not review or list clinics or treatments involving (1) bone marrow, cord blood or other blood stem cell populations used to treat diseased or damaged blood-forming or immune systems; or (2) epidermal stem cell therapies for burn trauma or limbal stem cells for corneal replacement.

Disclaimer of Warranties; Limitation of Liability
THE SITE AND THE CONTENT ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE ISSCR MAKES NO WARRANTY AS TO THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, AVAILABILITY, TIMELINESS OR RELIABILITY OF THE SITE OR ANY CONTENT AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE; THE SAFETY OR EFFICACY OF ANY CLINIC, THERAPY OR TREATMENT; OR THE RELEVANCE OR APPLICATION OF ANY INFORMATION TO ANY PARTICULAR SITUATION OR CIRCUMSTANCE.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE ISSCR DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE), STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, AND FURTHER DISCLAIMS ALL LOSSES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH ACCESS TO OR USE OF THE SITE OR ANY CONTENT, EVEN IF THE ISSCR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or the limitation or exclusion of liability for certain types of damages. Accordingly, some of the above limitations may not apply to you.

---

Privacy Policy

Last Revised: December 7, 2010

The International Society for Stem Cell Research believes that protecting your privacy and ensuring that the personal information we receive and collect from you is handled in a safe and responsible manner is important.  Personal information includes your name, e-mail address, country of residence, and other information about yourself or identifiers that permit us to contact you or communicate with you. This Privacy Policy describes the information that the ISSCR collects about you through the Site and how that information is used.

CHANGES TO PRIVACY POLICY
The ISSCR reserves the right to change this Privacy Policy at any time without notice. The ISSCR seeks to improve and update the Site, and as a result its policies may continue to evolve. The ISSCR encourages you to refer to this Privacy Policy on a regular basis for the most current privacy practices. If you do not accept this Privacy Policy, you are not authorized to use the Site and must discontinue use of the Site immediately.

Should the Privacy Policy be revised, the ISSCR will post the changes on the Site and the new Privacy Policy will only apply to information collected thereafter. You can determine when the Privacy Policy was last revised by referring to the "Last Revised" legend at the top of this page. Each time you access, use or browse the Site, you signify your acceptance of the then-current Privacy Policy.

WHEN INFORMATION IS COLLECTED
Submission of Clinic for Review
The Site allows members of the public to submit a clinic for review by the ISSCR under the elements explained in the Site. A submitter is asked to provide his/her name, email address, country of residence, and other information about the clinic that might including identifying information about the submitter. Your name and personal information will not be posted or revealed on the ISSCR site.  The ISSCR may use any personal information it receives to contact you for more information about the clinic that you submitted, or to respond to other questions you may raise.

Cookies
To help make the Site more responsive to the needs of users, the Site uses a standard feature of browser software called a "cookie" to assign each visitor a unique, random number that resides on your computer. The cookie does not actually identify the visitor, just the computer that a visitor uses to access the Site. Unless you voluntarily identify yourself (through submission of a clinic for review, for example), the ISSCR will not know who you are, even if a cookie has been assigned to your computer.

The ISSCR uses cookies to help deliver a more personalized website tailored to your needs. For example, cookies allow the ISSCR to track the pages on the Site that you visit and how often you visit. You can set your browser not to accept cookies; however, if you do, you may not be able to take advantage of certain personalized features of the Site.

Other Methods of Collecting Information
The Site also may collect certain non-personally identifiable information, including but not limited to the Internet protocol (IP) address and the type of computer operating system you are using (e.g., Microsoft Windows or Mac OS), the type of browser you are using (e.g., Firefox or Internet Explorer), the domain name of the Internet service provider, your activities while visiting our Sites, and the content you accessed.  The Site also collects and displays information about clinics as described on the Site and in the Disclaimer.

Children
The Site is not directed toward children under 13 years of age nor does the ISSCR knowingly collect information from children under age 13. If you are under age 13, you are not permitted to submit any personally identifiable information to the Site. If you are under 18 years of age, you may browse the Site but you may not submit any personal information to the Site.

USE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
The ISSCR may use your personal information to respond to questions or comments; to process and address submissions; to conduct research on users' demographics and interests; for internal business purposes such as data analysis and audits; and to send email updates about important functionality changes to the Site and other news items.

From time to time, the ISSCR may combine personal information we collect through the Site with information available from other sources (e.g., offline records or publicly available information). The ISSCR will treat the combined information as personal information.

The ISSCR may disclose your personal information to certain third parties that the ISSCR may hire to perform services on its behalf. The ISSCR also may disclose your personal information as required by applicable law and may perform disclosures that are necessary or advisable to: (a) protect the ISSCR's rights, safety or property or the rights, safety or property of others; (b) enforce the Terms of Use; (c) respond to your requests for customer service or other information; (d) to comply with legal process or cooperate with law enforcement or governmental requests; or (e) to comply with or as permitted by applicable laws and regulations.

The ISSCR reserves the right to transfer any and all information, including personal information, collected from Site users to an affiliate or third party in the event of any reorganization, merger, sale, joint venture, assignment, transfer or disposition of all or any portion of our business or operations (including without limitation in connection with bankruptcy or any similar proceedings).  The ISSCR may store or transfer personal information outside the United States.

The ISSCR also may use and share non-personally identifiable information. The use and disclosure of such information is not subject to any restrictions under this Privacy Policy. Additionally, the ISSCR may take personally identifiable information and de-identify it and share it in a de-identified or aggregated form with third parties to show or analyze site usage, improve our services, improve our user experience, or for similar purposes.

PROTECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
The ISSCR uses reasonable administrative, physical and electronic security measures to protect against unauthorized access to or the loss, misuse and alteration of your personally identifiable information.

LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES
The Site may include links to websites operated by third parties. The ISSCR endeavors to link only to reputable organizations; however, because other sites are not hosted or controlled by the ISSCR, the ISSCR is not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites or the content provided thereon. Therefore, the privacy policies of the linked sites may differ from those applicable to the Site, and the ISSCR encourages you to review the privacy policies of those other websites. This Privacy Policy only applies to information that the ISSCR collects through the Site and does not address the privacy or information practices of any third parties or other sites.

GOVERNING LAW
This Privacy Policy shall be governed by, and will be construed under, the laws of the State of Illinois, U.S.A., without regard to choice of law principles. Those who choose to access the Site from locations outside of the United States do so on their own initiative, and are responsible for compliance with local laws if and to the extent local laws are applicable. The ISSCR may limit the Site's availability, in whole or in part, to any person, geographic area or jurisdiction, at any time in its sole discretion.

QUESTIONS?
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or the Site, please contact us at stemcelltreatments@isscr.org. Please note that email communications may not be secure. Accordingly, you should not include personal or other sensitive information in your email correspondence to the ISSCR.