In August 2001, President Bush announced he was restricting federal stem cell research to 61 existing stem cell lines-a compromise position meant to balance the prospect of curing disease with ideological objections to research derived from embryonic tissue. Since that date, patients with Alzheimers, Parkinsons, diabetes and other diseases potentially affected by stem cell research have vigorously protested the restrictions, calling for a reversal of Bush's decision. John Kerry has made the stem cell issue a prominent part of his campaign platform, pledging to end the restrictions if elected.
Distinguished researchers Ruth R. Faden and John D. Gearhart outline four objections to Bush's Stem Cells in their August 23, 2004 Washington Post Op-ed, "Facts on Stem Cells"
"The embryonic stem cell lines the president approved for federal funding three years ago, all of which were derived before August 2001, are clearly inadequate to advance stem cell science, let alone to take that science from the bench to the bedside. There are too few of them, no more than 21. All of the approved stem cell lines were prepared using mouse cells and thus pose a risk of contaminating human subjects with mouse viruses. This is a needless risk; since 2001 we have developed techniques for establishing embryonic stem cell lines without using mouse cells. Even if the approved lines were safe for use in humans, many patients who would be appropriate and willing participants in the first human trials would have difficulty receiving grafts based on these lines because of problems of genetic matching. There are just too few lines to even begin to accommodate the genetic diversity in our population."
"Under the current policy, it is not possible to use federal funding to generate or study stem cells derived from embryos with genetic defects or disease genes. Such cell lines would be invaluable in helping to determine the molecular basis of disease and in seeking ways to correct problems or ameliorate their consequences."
"Restricting federal funding to just the approved lines is retarding progress for financial as well as scientific reasons. The $25 million allocated by the Bush administration for embryonic stem cell research in 2003 is a tiny fraction of the National Institutes of Health budget of $18.3 billion for extramural research. To put this in perspective, in that same year the government spent almost eight times as much ($190.7 million) on research with less promising "adult" stem cells. There are formidable scientific and medical challenges to attaining our goal of providing cell-based therapies that are safe and effective. It will take the efforts of many scientists and clinicians in a variety of disciplines to bring this technology to the clinic. The results of laboratory investigations on human embryonic stem cells are highly encouraging and consistent with meeting this goal. Private funding of stem cell research is important and is increasingly forthcoming, but in these early stages, federal funding is paramount and essential."
"We are losing ground to other countries with less restrictive policies on embryonic stem cells. This month British government officials announced the first license to use cloning techniques to generate a human embryo to produce stem cells that might be used for the treatment of disease. Other nations are investing heavily -- hundreds of millions of dollars -- in embryonic stem cell research. The United States stands to lose substantially in the global economy of intellectual property and biotechnology. More important, patients everywhere stand to lose. As much as other countries invest, they cannot fill the gap. They are not as well positioned scientifically as the United States to advance stem cell research. Losing ground to other countries also means losing oversight of critical points in the research cycle, over the ethical treatment of human subjects and embryos, and over quality control."
To learn more about the Stem cell issue and each candidate's position, click on the following links.
Read the Kerry Campaign positions on Stem Cell Research:
Kerry's Radio Address on Stem Cells:
http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/speeches/
spc_2004_0807.html
Kerry Stem Cell Fact Sheet:
http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/health_care/stemcell.html
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation recently released a thoughtful whitepaper discussing the need for restrictions on stem cell research to be lifted:
http://www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.
viewpage&page_id=4499C2CE-2A5E-7B6E-13A7E25809570C65
