OpenBiome Marks Major Milestones in Expanding FMT Access: 30,000 Treatments and 1,000 Clinical Partners

SOMERVILLE, Mass. – This month, OpenBiome celebrated two notable milestones in its effort to expand safe access to fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT):

• OpenBiome partnered with its 1,000th clinical provider.

One thousand hospitals and clinics throughout all 50 states and 7 countries have partnered with OpenBiome to provide life-saving FMT to patients with recurrent C. difficile infections.

• OpenBiome shipped out its 30,000th treatment.

Thanks to all of the stool donors who have served over the years, on December 18, 2017, we processed and shipped our 30,000th FMT preparation for a C. difficile patient in need of care.

More than half a million Americans of all ages contract C. difficile infections each year, making it the most common hospital-acquired infection in the country. One in five patients don’t respond to an initial course of antibiotics. For patients that have failed multiple rounds of treatment, FMT has a demonstrated cure rate of 85%, and has emerged in many institutions as the standard of care for patients with recurrent C. difficile infections.

“In the five years since our founding, it has been remarkable to see the growth of this network of FMT practitioners,” said Carolyn Edelstein, OpenBiome’s executive director.  “The clinicians and patients who have become champions for FMT in their communities are driving a stunning pace of progress in this innovative field.” The footprint of this nation-wide network of partners means that 98% of Americans are no more than a two-hour drive from a hospital or clinic providing FMT for recurrent C. difficile infection.

OpenBiome has also expanded its support of the burgeoning field of research into the human microbiome. In addition to its work enabling 30 enrolling or completed studies, OpenBiome recently joined forces with the American Gastroenterological Association and the American Gut Project on the largest planned FMT study to date.

Beyond the scale of the network is the impact that FMT has had on recipients. One past patient wrote to explain:

“Before the transplant, I had been fighting C. difficile for about 6 months. My kids were in tears all the time because they wanted me home and I was falling into a deep depression. I never thought I was going feel good again.

“It is now Saturday, not even three full days after the transplant, and I feel like a new person. I actually got dressed today and went to the store to run errands. I haven’t been able to do that in months. I just want to thank you so much and thank the person who donated the stool.”

###

About OpenBiome

OpenBiome is the first public stool bank, founded to expand safe access to fecal transplantation for patients with recurrent C. difficile infection and to catalyze research on the microbiome’s role in human health. OpenBiome provides clinicians with rigorously screened, ready-to-use stool preparations and supports researchers with a suite of tools to discover how gut bacteria might treat diseases beyond C. difficile. Since 2013, OpenBiome has partnered with over 1,000 healthcare institutions across all 50 states and 7 countries to deliver over 30,000 treatments for recurrent C. difficile. Its research portfolio includes 49% of all U.S. trials exploring the use of fecal transplants to treat disease. For more information, visit http://www.openbiome.org.