Controversial Stem Cell 'Miracle' Treatment

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/OnCall/story?id=7065621&page=1

I thought that this was a very interesting article on the controversial stem cell treatments that are now being used more and more around the world. Although overseas they have started to use these treatments many doctors in the U.S are still very skeptical. Many doctors feel that people are unaware of how little is known about these treatments and that we still have a long way to go before cures are developed. But the article did give an example of a patient who was suffering from multiple sclerosis and after receiving an injection into her spine she was speaking normally and moving her head which is something she hadn’t did in years. It seems obvious to me that this is something that needs to be researched further, so I like the fact that Obama made the decision to allow federally funded research.
One of the things that could be cause for concern is that clinics are quickly popping up all over the world. It sounds as if many are simply trying to cash in on stem cells while they are hyped as the latest and greatest treatment you can receive. While going over seas to get a medical procedure sounds very risky I must say that if I had a life threatening disease and there was even a slight chance that receiving these treatments could provide me with a better life I would definitely look into leaving the country to get them. As long as you could afford it just seems like you wouldn’t have any thing to lose.

I agree, Jacob. This was an interesting article. While I'm all for stem cell research in the hopes of there being cures for many diseases, I suppose that this - just like anything else - has the potential to be abused and "hyped". People desperate for a miracle cure could fall prey to it. What is sad is that some people will take something good and use it to make money from vulnerable people.

However, I'm the same way. If I had a life-threatening disease and there was even a slight chance that receiving these treatments could provide me with a better life or a cure, then I would probably look into this, as long as I could afford it, of course. I'd do a lot of research, first, but if put in a situation such as that I would certainly be tempted.

Yes I agree this is really cool and this could be good or this could be bad. It will take time to see where this goes in the medical community. One thing to think about is the, MRSA and how that has come to be. Once we take care of one thing we can start another, it’s kind of like once you have one thing fixed you could run into another in the medical community. So, I agree with them using the cells and using the adult cells or miscarried cells. But we have to watch how fast we develop because we could miss something in the long run. This is all new and the hype is huge with the stem cells, but the President of the United States has given the green light, and the researchers are working day and night before something gets vetoed and they can not use them any longer or develop anything with them.