focus -WSS

focus

author：focus 2025-10-02 17:21:14 - browse：36

A photograph of someone preparing small petri dishes, each holding several 1-7 day old embryos, for cells to be extracted from each embryo to test for viability at an in vitro fertilization lab — In vitro fertilization lab staff prepare small petri dishes, each holding embryos. (This sample image doesn't necessarily show embryos grown in media from CooperSurgical, a supply giant now facing lawsuits.) Michael Wyke/AP

Patients from all over the country are filing lawsuits against medical supply giant CooperSurgical, alleging that fluid the company sent to in vitro fertilization clinics destroyed their embryos.

The fluid, called culture media, is filled with nutrients that allow embryos to develop enough to ultimately be implanted into a uterus. CooperSurgical acknowledged that the batch of fluid may have stunted embryo growth in a product recall notice, but it hasn’t disclosed exactly what went wrong. Lawsuits claim the media lacked magnesium, a key nutrient, while a Cooper representative told STAT the cause is still under investigation.

The recall could be a one-off manufacturing fluke. But the debacle, and the uncertainty around the problems with the fluid, sheds light on a larger problem: IVF doctors rarely know the exact composition of culture media in the first place. The Food and Drug Administration asks manufacturers for a list of materials before the media goes on the market, an FDA spokesperson told STAT. Companies will sometimes give clinics this information voluntarily, along with required labeling information like mouse embryo data, instructions for use, and warnings. But the FDA doesn’t require companies to list the ingredients or their proportions publicly.

Get unlimited access to award-winning journalism and exclusive events.

Subscribe Log In

Previous article： Drug repurposing or repositioning? The language matters
Next article： What STAT readers think about the FDA and patient advocacy

WSS

Readout LOUD podcast: ALS dilemma, first MASH drug, and more

President Biden's budget: Here's what you might have missed

Change Healthcare outage fallout shows need for new oversight

Amid AI frenzy, a top HHS official's quest to create safeguards

HCA sued by state AG for quality issues at Mission Health

Why health care costs have stayed mostly flat since 2010

hotspot

focus

hotspot

Novavax promises a turnaround & Lilly roils the obesity market

Bayer exec: U.S. is key in reviving beleaguered pharma’s drug pipeline

FDA approval of Sarepta Duchenne genetic therapy gives me hope

HCA sued by state AG for quality issues at Mission Health

Virginia high school admissions case could be legal follow

In boost for rare disease push, AstraZeneca to buy Amolyt Pharma

Hepatitis C has a cure — but many Americans still lack access to it

How to keep neuroscience’s past racism from being its future

ChatGPT in medicine: STAT answers readers' burning questions

Readout Newsletter: CAR

leisure time

Pushing for an NIH office for post

Drinking less cuts risk of oral cavity, esophageal cancer: Report

John Green on his newest strategy for fighting tuberculosis

Bristol Myers buys into radiopharmaceuticals with RayzeBio

Change Healthcare outage fallout shows need for new oversight

Bayer exec: U.S. is key in reviving beleaguered pharma’s drug pipeline

Wikipedia

Wikipedia

Wikipedia

hotspot