04-06-2007, 03:26 PM
The stem cell advance is creating waves.
Op-Ed from Tribune, Chandigarh, 6 April, 2007
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Stem cellâs potential
Wide-ranging research needed
The potential of stem cells in treating and even curing debilitating diseases, that have proved intractable to other forms of medical intervention, has been known for some time. The field is unfortunately embroiled in a controversy because of opposition from religious conservatives in the United States. This has, however, not prevented scientists in other parts of the world from going ahead, and the news that stem cell researchers at Manipal Hospital in Bangalore have claimed to have âcuredâ a patient of Parkinsonâs disease is intriguing. Apparently, the treatment was provided by using stem cells from the patientâs own body. In the West, even donated stem cells from another person have been transplanted to successfully treat patients suffering from blood cancer.
But Parkinsonâs has been particularly difficult to treat. To date, there is no cure or prevention. The disease attacks a specific part of the brain, and by the time it is identified, 80 per cent of the cells there have been damaged. The patientsâ movement and coordination, from walking and speaking to autonomous functions like swallowing and sweating, are affected. And the harrowing struggle begins. Treatment with pills has its own side-effects, ranging from jerky, uncontrolled movements to compulsive behaviours. Patients complain that since only a small number (relatively speaking) are affected, pharmaceutical companies do not spend enough money on research to cure Parkinsonâs.
This is where stem cells come in. If the doctors have indeed come up with a remedy, it is a dramatic breakthrough and will help millions world-wide. Manipal Hospitalâs neurological disease institute head Dr N.K. Venkataramana made the additional point that the present treatment did not stop the progression of the disease, but the potential was clear. He also added that since adult stem cells were used, the chances of the success causing a controversy were less. Much of the opposition is to embryonic stem cells. Scientists, however, aver that the greatest disease-curing potential lies in embryonic stem cells, and even in the US, a Democratic-dominated Congress appears ready to pass fresh legislation freeing up research. Manipalâs results, if validated, are indeed a step in the right direction.
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Op-Ed from Tribune, Chandigarh, 6 April, 2007
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Stem cellâs potential
Wide-ranging research needed
The potential of stem cells in treating and even curing debilitating diseases, that have proved intractable to other forms of medical intervention, has been known for some time. The field is unfortunately embroiled in a controversy because of opposition from religious conservatives in the United States. This has, however, not prevented scientists in other parts of the world from going ahead, and the news that stem cell researchers at Manipal Hospital in Bangalore have claimed to have âcuredâ a patient of Parkinsonâs disease is intriguing. Apparently, the treatment was provided by using stem cells from the patientâs own body. In the West, even donated stem cells from another person have been transplanted to successfully treat patients suffering from blood cancer.
But Parkinsonâs has been particularly difficult to treat. To date, there is no cure or prevention. The disease attacks a specific part of the brain, and by the time it is identified, 80 per cent of the cells there have been damaged. The patientsâ movement and coordination, from walking and speaking to autonomous functions like swallowing and sweating, are affected. And the harrowing struggle begins. Treatment with pills has its own side-effects, ranging from jerky, uncontrolled movements to compulsive behaviours. Patients complain that since only a small number (relatively speaking) are affected, pharmaceutical companies do not spend enough money on research to cure Parkinsonâs.
This is where stem cells come in. If the doctors have indeed come up with a remedy, it is a dramatic breakthrough and will help millions world-wide. Manipal Hospitalâs neurological disease institute head Dr N.K. Venkataramana made the additional point that the present treatment did not stop the progression of the disease, but the potential was clear. He also added that since adult stem cells were used, the chances of the success causing a controversy were less. Much of the opposition is to embryonic stem cells. Scientists, however, aver that the greatest disease-curing potential lies in embryonic stem cells, and even in the US, a Democratic-dominated Congress appears ready to pass fresh legislation freeing up research. Manipalâs results, if validated, are indeed a step in the right direction.
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