Drug & supplement interaction

Stem Cell Therapy + Interferon Beta-1a

Interferon Beta-1a brand names: Rebif, Avonex.

No Known Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated July 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 20, 2026
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Stem Cell Therapy and Interferon Beta-1a in our sources. Absence of a documented interaction is not the same as proven safety, and does not guarantee one does not exist. Do not start, stop, or change a medication or supplement based on this page; confirm with your pharmacist or doctor first.

Know someone interested in this? Share
Facebook Post Reddit Email
On this page
Interaction report

Stem Cell Therapy and Interferon Beta-1a

We checked these two against our interaction database. Here is what we found.

No Known Interaction Found

We did not find a documented interaction between Interferon Beta-1a and Stem Cell Therapy in our sources. This does not guarantee that the combination is completely free of risk — research on Stem Cell Therapy alongside specific medications may be limited.

Worth understanding: our licensed dataset holds no drug-interaction record for Stem Cell Therapy at all — not against Interferon Beta-1a, and not against any other medication we track. This verdict therefore rests on the absence of any recorded data, not on research that looked at this combination and found nothing. We cannot rule an interaction out.

Stem Cell Therapy is a treatment rather than something you take. Tell whoever provides it which medicines you use, and ask your prescriber whether it is appropriate for your health and treatment. Do not stop a prescribed medicine on your own.

Always talk with your pharmacist or doctor before making changes to your medications or supplements, particularly if you take several medications or have an ongoing health condition.

Stem Cell Therapy safety at a glance

Stem Cell Therapy overall Use caution Proven uses exist, but most marketed stem cell treatments are unproven and can carry serious risks.
Pregnancy Avoid Unproven stem cell treatments should be avoided during pregnancy unless medically necessary and supervised by specialists.
Breastfeeding Avoid Avoid elective stem cell procedures while breastfeeding; safety has not been established.

Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

Still wondering about combining Interferon Beta-1a and Stem Cell Therapy? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
What to actually watch for

What Stem Cell Therapy Itself Has Been Linked To

This is not an interaction — nothing below involves Interferon Beta-1a. It is the side-effect record for Stem Cell Therapy on its own, from the licensed Natural Medicines monograph. If something new turns up after you add Stem Cell Therapy, this list is the first place to look. 8 entries are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Loss of vision Worth acting on Additional detail

    “Injections of direct-to-consumer or commercial stem cell preparations have been associated with reports of cardiac arrest, myocardial infarction, arrhythmias, pulmonary embolism, venous thromboembolism, skin growths, cancer, sepsis, pneumonia, necrotizing ulcers, meningitis and other infections, allergic reactions, Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), stroke, hemorrhage, paraplegia, pain, blindness, and death.

    Intravitr…”

    Stem Cell Therapy · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in arrhythmia.

    5 sources cited
    1. 99543. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
    2. 99731. Zahid MF, Murad MH, Litzow MR, et al. Venous thromboembolism following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation-a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Hematol. 2016;95(9):1457-64. PubMed
    3. 109539. Richardson E, Project Director. Harms linked to unapproved stem cell interventions highlight need for greater FDA enforcement. The Pew Charitable Trusts Brief. June 2021. Available at: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/issue-briefs/2021/0
    4. 99542. Ansari ZA, Kuriyan AE, Albini TA. Unproven stem cell therapy for macular degeneration. Oncotarget. 2017;8(53):90636-90637. PubMed
    5. 99555. Kuriyan AE, Albini TA, Townsend JH, et al. Vision Loss after Intravitreal Injection of Autologous "Stem Cells" for AMD. N Engl J Med. 2017;376(11):1047-1053. PubMed

    “Intravitreal stem cell injection has been associated with reports of vision loss. In three cases, females aged 72 to 88-years-old received intravitreal injections of autologous adipose derived stem cells. Vision loss occurred due to ocular hypertension, hemorrhagic retinopathy, vitreous hemorrhage, growths on the retina, retinal detachment, or lens dislocation.”

    Stem Cell Therapy · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in hypertension.

    4 sources cited
    1. 99543. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
    2. 99542. Ansari ZA, Kuriyan AE, Albini TA. Unproven stem cell therapy for macular degeneration. Oncotarget. 2017;8(53):90636-90637. PubMed
    3. 99555. Kuriyan AE, Albini TA, Townsend JH, et al. Vision Loss after Intravitreal Injection of Autologous "Stem Cells" for AMD. N Engl J Med. 2017;376(11):1047-1053. PubMed
    4. 109541. Hinkle JW, Mahmoudzadeh R, Kuriyan AE. Cell-based therapies for retinal diseases: a review of clinical trials and direct to consumer "cell therapy" clinics. Stem Cell Res Ther. 2021 Oct 11;12(1):538. PubMed
  • A stroke or mini-stroke Worth acting on Additional detail

    “Injected direct-to-consumer stem cell preparations have been associated with the development of various cancerous lesions. In a case report, a 66-year-old man received intrathecal infusions of mesenchymal, embryonic, and fetal neural stem cells for ischemic stroke recovery at commercial stem-cell clinics, which resulted in glioproliferative lesions in the spinal cord causing lower back pain, paraplegia, and urinary i…”

    Stem Cell Therapy · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in back pain.

    2 sources cited
    1. 99543. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
    2. 99545. Berkowitz AL, Miller MB, Mir SA, et al. Glioproliferative Lesion of the Spinal Cord as a Complication of "Stem-Cell Tourism". N Engl J Med. 2016 Jul 14;375(2):196-8. PubMed
  • Unsteadiness / Kidney problems Worth acting on Additional detail

    “Injected direct-to-consumer stem cell preparations have been associated with reports of stroke, brain hemorrhage, and other neurological complications. In one case report, a 69-year-old female with leg numbness and difficulty walking from chemotherapy complications developed a stroke and died after receiving grossly filtered bone marrow aspirate injected into her right carotid artery.”

    Stem Cell Therapy · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in chemotherapy-related complications.

    2 sources cited
    1. 99543. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
    2. 102553. Madhavan AA, Summerfield D, Hunt CH, et al. Polyclonal lymphocytic infiltrate with arachnoiditis resulting from intrathecal stem cell transplantation. Neuroradiol J. 2020 Apr;33(2):174-178. PubMed
  • A heart attack / Blood clots Worth acting on Additional detail

    “Injections of commercial stem cell preparations have been associated with cases of cardiac arrest, heart attack, arrhythmias, and pulmonary embolism. In a case report, a 77-year-old male with pulmonary hypertension developed cardiac arrest and died after receiving an intravenous infusion of adipose derived stem cells.”

    Stem Cell Therapy · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in arrhythmia.

    2 sources cited
    1. 99543. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
    2. 99731. Zahid MF, Murad MH, Litzow MR, et al. Venous thromboembolism following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation-a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Hematol. 2016;95(9):1457-64. PubMed
  • A severe skin reaction Worth acting on Additional detail

    “In a case report, a patient developed an allergic autoimmune reaction after receiving unspecified stem cells. A case of Stevens-Johnson syndrome has also been reported. In another case report, a 27-year-old female had an autoimmune reaction of acute disseminated encephalomyelitis after an intrathecal injection of mesenchymal stem cells.”

    Stem Cell Therapy · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in graft-versus-host disease (gvhd).

    2 sources cited
    1. 99543. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
    2. 99731. Zahid MF, Murad MH, Litzow MR, et al. Venous thromboembolism following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation-a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Hematol. 2016;95(9):1457-64. PubMed
  • Raised blood pressure Worth acting on Additional detail

    Recorded for Stem Cell Therapy in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under A heart attack / Blood clots above.

  • Liver problems Worth acting on Additional detail

    “Injected direct-to-consumer stem cell preparations have been associated with reports of sepsis, pneumonia, necrotizing ulcers, meningitis, and other infections. Intra-articular injections of contaminated stem cells have resulted in mutiple cases of infections, most of which were bloodstream infections.”

    Stem Cell Therapy · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in cirrhosis.

    3 sources cited
    1. 99561. Perkins KM, Spoto S, Rankin DA, et al. Notes from the Field: Infections After Receipt of Bacterially Contaminated Umbilical Cord Blood-Derived Stem Cell Products for Other Than Hematopoietic or Immunologic Reconstitution - United States, 2018. MMWR Morb M
    2. 99543. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
    3. 109539. Richardson E, Project Director. Harms linked to unapproved stem cell interventions highlight need for greater FDA enforcement. The Pew Charitable Trusts Brief. June 2021. Available at: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/issue-briefs/2021/0
  • Bleeding or bruising Worth acting on Additional detail

    Recorded for Stem Cell Therapy in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under Loss of vision above.

Showing the 10 most notable of 15 recorded effects — ranked by how unusual each one is across medicines generally, with serious effects weighted up.

Everything above comes from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record for Stem Cell Therapy — expand a row for the licensed statement it rests on. We haven’t matched Interferon Beta-1a to its FDA label in our system yet, so we can’t compare its own side-effect list here — the leaflet that comes with your prescription is the authoritative list for Interferon Beta-1a.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Interferon Beta-1a

This page covers Stem Cell Therapy only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Interferon Beta-1a page lists 57 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Beer (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), Wine (major), Alfalfa (moderate) and Angelica Archangelica (moderate).

By severity: 3 major · 53 moderate · 1 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Interferon Beta-1a page

“Siberian cocklebur, an herb tied to documented cases of liver failure, is the first name to know for anyone injecting interferon beta-1a (Rebif, Avonex) for multiple sclerosis. Interferon beta-1a can strain the liver on its own, which is why prescribers order routine liver blood tests, and 38 of the 57 supplements on file carry that sa…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Interferon Beta-1a interaction page

How much people look this up

Where Stem Cell Therapy and Interferon Beta-1a Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Stem Cell Therapy
Steady interest

#829 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Interferon Beta-1a
Steady interest

#1,654 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Where does our data come from?
  • Source: the Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) clinical database — the evidence-graded professional reference for herb & supplement interactions.
  • Citation library: 103,510 references behind our interaction content, 65,311 of them resolved to verified PubMed/DOI sources. See every Stem Cell Therapy reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Stem Cell Therapy and Interferon Beta-1a records this page draws on were last updated July 10, 2026.
  • What “no known interaction” means: no documented interaction in the sources above — not a guarantee of safety. Supplements are studied far less than prescription drugs, so we say exactly what the evidence supports, and nothing more.
Data structure & sourcing designed and verified by .
Treatment approach

About Stem Cell Therapy

What is Stem Cell Therapy?

  • Joint and arthritis pain
  • Sports and orthopedic injuries
  • Anti-aging and wellness
  • Blood and immune disorders (proven medical uses)
  • Neurological conditions (experimental)

Stem cell therapy is a medical treatment, not a dietary supplement or herb. While some forms—like bone marrow transplants for blood cancers—are well-established and FDA-approved, most clinics offering stem cell injections for joints, aging, or chronic disease are selling unproven, sometimes risky treatments. Talk to a qualified doctor and be very cautious of clinics making big promises.

Stem cells (from bone marrow, blood, fat tissue, or umbilical cord) · Clinic-administered injections or infusions of cells

An interaction check asks whether these two react with each other — it does not ask whether Stem Cell Therapy is a good idea for someone in your situation. Here is what our Stem Cell Therapy record says about it on its own.

Stem Cell Therapy: dosing

There is no standard over-the-counter dose for stem cell therapy, because it is a medical procedure, not a supplement you buy and take at home. The type of cells, how they are prepared, and how they are given vary widely by treatment and clinic.For approved uses like transplants, dosing is carefully calculated by specialists based on the patient and condition. For unproven clinic treatments, there is no agreed-upon dose, and that lack of standardization is one reason these treatments are hard to judge for safety.Never accept a stem cell treatment based only on marketing.

From our Stem Cell Therapy monograph — the full record covers uses, side effects and every documented interaction.

Read the full Stem Cell Therapy monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Interferon Beta-1a Intramuscular Injection

What Is Interferon Beta-1a Intramuscular Injection Used For?

Brand names: Rebif, Avonex

  • Interferon beta-1a intramuscular injection is used to treat adults with various forms of multiple sclerosis (MS; a disease in which the nerves do not function properly and people may experience weakness, numbness, loss of muscle coordination, and problems with vision, speech, and bladder control) including:

    • clinically isolated syndrome (CIS; nerve symptom episodes that last at least 24 hours),

    • relapsing-remitting forms (course of disease where symptoms flare up from time to time), or

    • secondary progressive forms (course of disease where relapses occur more often).

  • Interferon beta-1a is in a class of medications called immunomodulators. It works by decreasing inflammation and preventing nerve damage that may cause symptoms of multiple sclerosis.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Interferon Beta-1a

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (192,069 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Multiple sclerosis relapse 15,851 reports
Influenza like illness 13,253 reports
Fatigue 11,554 reports
Fall 10,604 reports
Multiple sclerosis 9,358 reports
See full Interferon Beta-1a Intramuscular Injection drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Stem Cell Therapy

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Stem Cell Therapy — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

0Major
0Moderate
0Minor
2,829No known interaction
2,829 No interaction
No interaction 2,829 drugs checked — show the list

We also checked Stem Cell Therapy against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,829 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Stem Cell Therapy list.

See the full Stem Cell Therapy interactions page
See every supplement checked against Interferon Beta-1a, ranked by severity
Evidence & sources

Stem Cell Therapy References

The 26 references that drive our Stem Cell Therapy monograph and interaction data, from the evidence-graded Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) database. Citations with a link open the study on PubMed or the publisher’s site.

  1. Ansari ZA, Kuriyan AE, Albini TA. Unproven stem cell therapy for macular degeneration. Oncotarget. 2017;8(53):90636-90637. PubMed
  2. Bauer G, Elsallab M, Abou-El-Enein M. Concise Review: A Comprehensive Analysis of Reported Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Unproven Stem Cell-Based Interventions. Stem Cells Transl Med. 2018;7(9):676-685. PubMed
  3. Berkowitz AL, Miller MB, Mir SA, et al. Glioproliferative Lesion of the Spinal Cord as a Complication of "Stem-Cell Tourism". N Engl J Med. 2016 Jul 14;375(2):196-8. PubMed
  4. Kuriyan AE, Albini TA, Townsend JH, et al. Vision Loss after Intravitreal Injection of Autologous "Stem Cells" for AMD. N Engl J Med. 2017;376(11):1047-1053. PubMed
  5. Perkins KM, Spoto S, Rankin DA, et al. Notes from the Field: Infections After Receipt of Bacterially Contaminated Umbilical Cord Blood-Derived Stem Cell Products for Other Than Hematopoietic or Immunologic Reconstitution - United States, 2018. MMWR Morb M
  6. Iijima H, Isho T, Kuroki, Takahashi, Aoyama. Effectiveness of mesenchymal stem cells for treating patients with knee osteoarthritis: a meta-analysis toward the establishment of effective regenerative rehabilitation. NPJ Regen Med. 2018;3:15. PubMed
  7. Sanapati J, Manchikanti L, Atluri S, et al. Do Regenerative Medicine Therapies Provide Long-Term Relief in Chronic Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review and Metaanalysis. Pain Physician. 2018;21(6):515-540. DOI
  8. Rocco M, Juri C. Is treatment with stem cells effective in Parkinson's disease? Medwave. 2018;18(5):e7242. PubMed
  9. Shah R, Latham SB, Khan SA, Shahreyar M, Hwang I, Jovin IS. A comprehensive meta-analysis of stem cell therapy for chronic angina. Clin Cardiol. 2018;41(4):525-531. PubMed
  10. Guo J, Dardik A, Fang K, Huang R, Gu Y. Meta-analysis on the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers with autologous stem cells. Stem Cell Res Ther. 2017;8(1):228. PubMed
  11. Nagpal A, Choy FC, Howell S, et al. Safety and effectiveness of stem cell therapies in early-phase clinical trials in stroke: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Stem Cell Res Ther. 2017;8(1):191. PubMed
  12. Qiu Y, Li MY, Feng T, et al. Systematic review with meta-analysis: the efficacy and safety of stem cell therapy for Crohn's disease. Stem Cell Res Ther. 2017;8(1):136. PubMed
  13. Sormani MP, Muraro PA, Schiavetti I, et al. Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in multiple sclerosis: A meta-analysis. Neurology. 2017;88(22):2115-2122. PubMed
  14. Gao W, Chen D, Liu G, Ran X. Autologous stem cell therapy for peripheral arterial disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Stem Cell Res Ther. 2019;10(1):140. PubMed
  15. Fisher SA, Doree C, Mathur A, Taggart DP, Martin-Rendon E. Stem cell therapy for chronic ischaemic heart disease and congestive heart failure. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2016;12:CD007888. PubMed

Medication overviews come from MedlinePlus (NIH); supplement label data from the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database. Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.

Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Having Stem Cell Therapy While Taking Interferon Beta-1a: Common Questions

Is it safe to have Stem Cell Therapy while taking Interferon Beta-1a?
We do not list a known interaction between Stem Cell Therapy and Interferon Beta-1a. That does not guarantee the combination is risk-free, so confirm with your pharmacist or doctor — especially if you take other medications or have a health condition.
Does Interferon Beta-1a interact with any supplements?
Yes. Interferon Beta-1a has documented interactions with 57 supplements in our database — Stem Cell Therapy is not one of them. The Interferon Beta-1a interaction page linked on this page lists every one, ranked by severity.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

Where next

Keep Exploring

Stem Cell Therapy monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Interferon Beta-1a Intramuscular Injection drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Interferon Beta-1a supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Interferon Beta-1a, ranked by severity Supplement interaction checker Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z Every drug we’ve checked against herbs & supplements References The 26 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Interferon Beta-1a and Stem Cell Therapy?

Our pharmacists answer your medication & supplement questions — free.

Ask a pharmacist

This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.