Yet, without urgent action, Canada risks losing both the health and economic benefits of its discoveries. Other jurisdictions, including the U.S., EU, and Japan, are advancing faster, approving and adopting CGTs years earlier. Too often, Canadian innovations developed with public investment are commercialized abroad while Canadian patients wait.
To address this, the Stem Cell Network is leading a national effort focused on the accessibility, affordability, and adoption of advanced therapeutics in Canada. Through research-informed policy development and collaboration with experts across academia, biotech, industry, government, and patient communities, SCN is working to identify solutions and overcome barriers in regulation, reimbursement, and health system implementation.
This initiative aims to build the foundation for a “Canada-First Approach”—one that ensures homegrown innovations are translated, commercialized, and delivered to Canadian patients efficiently, equitably, and sustainably.
Why this matters
Canada’s current pace of policy and regulatory modernization threatens progress on several fronts. Regulatory and review delays are discouraging investment, with CGT firms—despite raising roughly $1.5 billion in recent years—often commercializing abroad where systems are faster and more predictable. At the same time, Canadian patients are waiting up to five years longer for therapies approved elsewhere, prompting some to seek unsafe alternatives. Meanwhile, global competitors such as the U.S., EU, and Japan are introducing tailored CGT pathways that attract clinical trials, talent, and capital away from Canada.
By modernizing our policy and health system pathways, Canada can strengthen its life sciences ecosystem, secure domestic biomanufacturing capacity, retain top talent, and ensure that regenerative medicine—an area pioneered by Canadian—continues to advance new treatments and deliver better health solutions for the future.
