Top 10 Influential Entrepreneurs in Healthcare 2021
GIOSTAR is a San Diego, California-based organization led by Dr. Anand Srivastava and Deven Patel. Dr. Srivastava has held scientific positions at leading universities and research institutions in the United States, such as the University of California Irvine and UC Los Angeles, along with the following San Diego-based institutions: Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute. He has authored more than 100 scientific publications, and is widely regarded as the “father of stem cell science.” Under his leadership, GIOSTAR has been one of the pioneers in the field of stem cell therapy. Few in the scientific community were willing to accept the therapeutic efficacy of stem cells, despite the publication of numerous studies providing supporting evidence. In contrast to these skeptics, GIOSTAR joined the leading groups of scientists and researchers in embracing the science and sought to build upon its compendium of findings.
GIOSTAR’s vision is to provide its scientific and medical expertise to establish the most advanced stem cell therapy and research institutes around the world. The company actively seeks public and private sector investors to help deliver stem cell-based therapies to people suffering from degenerative or genetic diseases. GIOSTAR is in the process of expanding its operations in the US, India, China, Thailand, Philippines, Japan, Australia, Singapore, Brazil, Bahamas, and a few more countries.
What were the constraints you faced at the time of inception?
GIOSTAR faced several ethical and financial constraints at the inception of the company, and for a few years thereafter. As the primary findings in the field were based on embryonic stem cells, social and ethical groups vehemently opposed the use of stem cells for research and therapy. These objections culminated in restrictions on fundings from government agencies. However, scientists demonstrated that stem cells could be isolated from adult tissues, paving the way for extensive research and the application of the science for therapeutic purposes. Since most of the therapeutic interventions in conventional medicine are palliative (i.e., they only help manage symptoms), it was difficult for people to accept that any therapy could be curative, a capability uniquely afforded by stem cells.
What unique services do you provide to the customers?
GIOSTAR has several unique characteristics that distinguish us from our peers. Our Institute has been the pioneer in the research field of stem cell science, with a firm commitment to staying abreast of the latest developments with this technology. Second, we want to offer our patients comprehensive therapeutic help, which is thoroughly tested in our numerous clinics. Finally, our services are rooted in an altruistic, humanitarian mission to help the masses, as opposed to an opportunistic quest to derive monetary gain from patients’ suffering.
Why should one prefer you?
GIOSTAR delivers therapies that are customized to each patient’s health conditions, grounded in decades of logical, scientific research. We evaluate the body as a cohesive unit, as opposed to a disjointed collection of organs and ailments. This holistic perspective enables us to devise and deliver the most effective therapies.
What personality traits and capabilities do you believe are required to enhance and promote health solution providing services?
Certain characteristics are essential for success in any field. Healthcare, in particular, requires that its practitioners possess an unyielding dedication to the well-being of all humans. GIOSTAR takes this commitment very seriously and approaches healthcare in a highly integrated manner, as opposed to the traditional compartmentalized perspective. This practice, coupled with the use of stem cells, enables us to devise the most effective therapies to manage the myriad of health problems of our patients. Share about your journey from the beginning. Our professional journey began with the recognition of the potential for stem cells to serve as a highly effective therapeutic agent for treating several degenerative diseases. In beginning, our firm had to overcome a great deal of skepticism about the efficacy of this GIOSTAR Influential Entrepreneurs in Healthcare, Top 10 2021 Dr. Anand Srivastava Chairman & Co-founder technology. However, scientists and those in the general community alike began expressing great enthusiasm after experiencing the therapeutic wonders of science first-hand. This led to GIOSTAR and other leading stem cell institutions receiving steadily increasing recognition.
How do you manage the promotion of your project through social media outreach and email campaigns?
GIOSTAR relies primarily on word-of-mouth referrals to augment our patient base. After they experience dramatic positive results following the treatments in our global facilities, patients frequently refer friends, family members, and other loved ones to GIOSTAR. Given our impressive success rate, they feel that our firm is uniquely positioned to provide therapeutic benefit to those suffering from the most debilitating disorders.
What do you think about the expansion of GIOSTAR? What will be the plan?
At present, our clinics are in India and Mexico. We are in negotiations with business groups for further expansion in Japan, Thailand, South Africa, and several other countries.
How do you see the future of healthcare in nearby times?
A thorough re-evaluation of our medical system is needed, on numerous fronts: Financial. The cost of training medical professionals is increasing exponentially every year, which may result in a severe shortage of well-trained medical professionals. Coupled with the exorbitant investments required for developing new therapeutic agents, effective medical care will likely become cost prohibitive for most patients. Holistic Approach. Currently, healthcare in the United States is focused primarily on interventions that “buy some time” for the body to heal; in other words, not many interventions are truly curative. Therapies are currently geared toward specific diseases and treat organs as individual, disconnected compartments of the body. Because of this narrow focus, modern medicine has been ineffective in treating metabolic diseases. Healthcare professionals should instead view the entire body as a unit, and devise therapies accordingly; this approach will pave the way for cures for metabolic diseases. As we know, cells are the unit of life and stem cells are the master cells. Hence, these cells are aptly suited to repair damaged organs in a very holistic manner. In our scientific view, stem cells are the least expensive and the best way to manage several metabolic diseases.
Can you describe emerging trends you noticed HEALTHCARE industry?
The most significant change we’ve observed in healthcare is the super specialization of medical professionals. The side effects of the trend of superspecialization are adversely affecting the availability of health care personnel as so super-specialized persons may be fewer and fewer. Additionally, the extensive investment of time and money into super-specialized training will likely dissuade intelligent, capable individuals from entering the health care profession. In addition, clinicians are inclining more towards the holistic approach to managing a metabolic disease and not treating a disease just blocking a signaling pathway which often comes up with several side effects.
Please tell us if there is an effective solution to the current COVID-19 scenario? Coronavirus, which causes COVID-19, induces severe inflammation and lung damage. This can be effectively managed by using a specific category of stem cells known as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). These cells are well-known for their capabilities for immunomodulatory function and tissue regeneration, thus providing a two-pronged approach for battling COVID-19. Therefore, MSCs provide the best clinical option for managing COVID-19 symptoms and related organ damage. Based on these facts, GIOSTAR procured approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for using stem cells for COVID-19 patients under the FDA “expanded access for compassionate use” program. The company was then able to successfully treat patients who were gravely ill with the disease.
- Year of Founding : 2008
- Funding Information : Mostly research grants.
- Founding Members : Dr. Anand Srivastava and Mr. Deven Patel
- Office Locations : 4660 La Jolla Village Drive Suite 100 & 200 San Diego, California, 92122, U.S.A. (headquarters)
- Company Strength: Varies between 25-70.
- Website : www.giostar.com
- News Link : https://swiftnlift.com/Giostar-Dr.Anand_Srivastava.php
