GRRRrrrr! From FoxNews – “Promising Research: Stem Cell Breakthrough May Eliminate Need for Embryos” Yes, I understand that the story is specifically about iPS cells and I am happy to see a mainstream media story about “promising stem cell research” that does not involve the killing of tiny human beings. But when Bill Hemmer asked “how great do we believe … Read More
“Lifesaver” to Donate Stem Cells a Second Time
Now here’s a wonderful, feel-good story to start off your weekend with!: Terry Bowe is a lifesaver. In 2005, he donated his blood stem cells to a critically ill patient whose name he didn’t know and whose city and even country of residence remained a guarded secret. All he was told by officials with the National Marrow Donor Program was … Read More
Study: Memory Forms at 30 Weeks in the Womb
Behold the awesome wonder of unborn human life! (h/t Respect Life STL on Twitter): WEDNESDAY, July 15 (HealthDay News) — Fetuses that are only 30 weeks old may already possess short-term memory, Dutch researchers report. “This is the next step into a better insight in the development of the fetal central nervous system,” said study co-author Dr. Jan G. Nijhuis, … Read More
The Catholic Church is Not “Anti-Stem Cell Research!”
It frustrates me to no end when ESCR advocates and mainstream news outlets label the Catholic Church and other pro-life advocates as “anti stem cell research” when, in fact, we only opposes one morally objectionable type of such research, while praising and supporting its ethical counterpart. It’s insulting and that’s why they do it, but just so there’s no confusion, … Read More
“They Don’t Know What Else is Out There”
Video of Kadi DeHaan from Michigan who was paralyzed in a car accident four years ago and has benefited from treatments using stem cells derived from her own bone marrow: She really nails it here when she says that when you mention stem cells many people assume you’re talking about embryonic and “don’t know what else is out there.” Either … Read More
Dismissing Successful Science
Regular readers of this blog know that I am a steadfast advocate for ethical research and treatments and I will frequently point out the ineffectiveness of embryonic stem cell research and the existence of more effective and ethical alternatives. Although I make it a point to stress the fact that, in the final analysis, the question of whether or not … Read More
Another Amazing ASC-SCI Success!
Thanks to Rebecca Taylor for finding this story – which I’m sure has not been picked up by many other media outlets, if any. DaVinci Biosciences, in collaboration with Luis Vernaza Hospital in Ecuador, this week had the results of its study demonstrating the safety and feasibility of its acute and chronic spinal cord injury treatment published in an issue … Read More
Whose Hopes are Unproven? REALLY!?!
Last Saturday the LA Times ran a story with the headline: Cord blood: Banking on unproven hopes. The article highlights some studies in which human patients have have been successfully treated with stem cells taken from umbilical cord blood, particularly mentioning the case of 3-year-old Dallas Hextell who was treated for cerebral palsy with his own cord blood that his … Read More
Dental Stem Cells
FoxNews has a nice little feature on stem cells found in teeth. It’s nice to see some media positively reporting on ethical stem cell research for a change: At the end the reporter mentions that the United States military is researching the ability of adult stem cells to treat wounded veterans. Last April I mentioned the federal government dedicating $85 … Read More
Stem Cells Treat Early Stage MS
Just another adult stem cell success story: A dose of their own stem cells “reset” the malfunctioning immune system of patients with early-stage multiple sclerosis and, for the first time, reversed their disability, according to researchers at Northwestern University in Chicago. All 21 patients in the study had the “relapsing-remitting” form of the disease that makes their symptoms alternately flare … Read More