Current Clinical Use of Adult Stem Cells to Help Human Patients
Proponents of embryonic stem cell research have created a false impression that these cells have a proven therapeutic use. In fact the embryonic cells have never helped a single human patient; any claim that they may someday do so is guesswork.
Adult stem cells have proven benefits, and new uses are constantly being found:
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Auto-immune diseases (multiple sclerosis, lupus, juvenile and other rheumatoid arthritis) |
Stroke |
Immunodeficiencies, including a new treatment for severe combined immune deficiency (when used with gene therapy) |
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Anemia |
Epstein-Barr virus infection |
Corneal damage (full vision restored in most patients treated in clinical trials) |
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Blood and liver diseases |
Osteogenesis imperfecta |
Cancer treatment (in combination with chemotherapy and/or radiation): brain tumors, retinoblastoma, ovarian cancer, solid tumors, testicular cancer, multiple myeloma, leukemias, breast cancer, neuroblastoma, non-Hodgkins lymphoma, renal cell carcinoma |
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Cardiac repair after heart attack (clinical trials announced Spring 2001) |
Type I diabetes (not stem cells as such, but pancreatic islet cells from donors) |
Cartilage and bone damage |
List of Conditions for which Embryonic Stem Cells have helped human patients: There is no list. These cells have never helped a human patient.
Marcus Grompe, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics, Oregon Health Sciences University an expert in cell transplantation to repair damaged livers, says,”there is no evidence of therapeutic benefit from embryonic stem cells.”
Bert Vogelstein, Professor of Oncology and Pathology at John Hopkins University and Chairman of the Institute of Medicines committee studying stem cell research, described all claims of therapeutic benefit from embryonic stem cells as “conjectural.”
Right to Life News Canada winter 2004 edition