Published in October 2025, the paper reported the results of a phase III clinical trial of more than 400 patients in Shiraz, Iran, looking at whether stem cell therapy lowers the risk of heart failure after a heart attack. The journal announced the results in a press release, and news of the findings appeared in several outlets. New Scientist called the study the “strongest evidence yet that stem cells can help the heart repair itself.”

A week after the study was published, sleuths took to PubPeer to point out inconsistencies between the data reported in the article and the dataset uploaded with it. The concerns included a “curious repeating pattern” of records in the dataset and a high number of integers for the height and weight of patients.

The authors claimed the data issues were “unintentional and arose from integration of hospital level datasets,” according to the retraction notice, and supplied a revised dataset. “However, the data were not reviewed by the journal before publication,” the notice continues. “The journal is currently trialling how it might better manage review of data before publication.”

Source https://retractionwatch.com/2026/03/31/bmj-retracts-cardiac-stem-cell-paper-removes-authors-months-after-sleuths-flag-data-mismatch/

Another high-profile case has interested scientists. Read now