Benefits of Stem Cell Therapy Essay Example

Benefits of Stem Cell Therapy Essay The American public has been a haven of open scientific inquiry and it has always been a factor in creating globally accepted innovations in biotechnology and medicine. As the country is beset by several debilitating diseases, the medical community struggles to find a solution for these chronic and fatal diseases. The issue regarding stem cell research has been a widely and hotly debated issue due to its ethical implications. The process takes the human embryo cells which have been deemed by the National Institute of Health as having greater developmental potential as opposed to adult stem cells. Essentially, in order for one to have a so-called stem cell research line, it would translate to the destruction of a human embryo. In the legislative realm, that is where the clash of opinion begins. This paper argues, however, that stem cell therapy provides a viable and alternative solution in therapy and many other researches to treat illnesses.Though Stem Cell Research is only in the ea rly stages, there is a growing consensus among researchers that many very effective medical treatments can be realized through cloning stem cells. This is because these cells can be made to replicate specific human tissues. These cells offer the possibility of a renewable source of replacement cells and tissue to treat a myriad of diseases, conditions, and disabilities including Parkinsons and Alzheimers diseases, spinal cord injury, stroke, burns, heart disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Researches reveal that women who donate their eggs for stem cell research or in vitro fertilization do not have increased risk of health complications.The California Institute of Regenerative Medicine reports that risk related to infection are low among women who undergo the procedure. Meanwhile, recent evidence also expound on the neurological stem cells growing better when the immediate vicinity of certain â€Å"helper† cells are present. (Super-Thin Membrane Desig n Opens Possibility For Better Dialysis, Fuel Cells, Neuro-Stem Cell Cultivation Author McGrath also suggest that the neurological stem cells can be attached to one side of the membrane whole the helper cells stays on the other side. Researchers have revealed the numerous applications of this discovery to the nanomembrane (Women Who Donate Eggs For Stem Cell Research Face Few Health Risks, Institute Of   Medicine Report Says, 2007)Several states like the state of Hawaii has passed the bill that allows stem cell research to continue under the express, written consent of the person who is allowing the use of embryonic fetal tissue. The bill that has been passed in the state of Hawaii explicitly permits that the â€Å"research involving the derivation and use of human embryonic stem cells, human embryonic germ cells, and human adult stem cells from any source, including somatic cell nuclear transplantation† shall be permitted. The state of Hawaii also distinctly provides sever al provisions for this research and some of these conditions require first and foremost the review and approval of an institutional review board. It also requires that the physician that is delivering fertility treatment would inform the patient well enough to make a voluntary and knowledgeable decision regarding the disposition of the human embryos. The physician is also mandated to give the option of storing, discarding or donating them to any individual or any research (Human Stem Cell Research. S.B. No. 1351. A Bill for an Act).Recently, the Healthday News published the study of two German trials that made use of injected stem cells in order to strengthen the heart muscle. This was done after a heart attack. The stem cells originated from bone marrow. In University of Frankfurt, 204 patients were gathered to see the effect of stem cells injected in them three to seven days after a heart attack. Half of this number did not get the injection. Four months later, the experts found o ut that the measure of the heart’s ability to pump blood was significantly better in patients who got the stem cells. Follow-up procedures revealed that after a year, the stem-cell recipients had a significantly lower incidence of second heart attacks (Edelson). Some more effective experimental treatments for certain conditions have resulted from the Stem Cell Research. In other countries, policies concerning stem cell research are only now being developed. The United States policy, which is primarily involved with the issue of federal funding, is not overly restrictive when compared to many policies which do presently exist.In my opinion, stem cell research is can provide scientists with the right data in their future projects that may be beneficial to mankind in the future. The dawn of genetic engineering and eventually, cloning has spurred heated debates on its benefits and downsides. Stem cell research along with the results that it can generate was previously impossible or just a fragment of man’s colourful imagination. Now it has become part of man’s long list of conquest and proof of his genius. Debates ranged from the apparent, practical and commonsensical to the abstract, ethical and spiritual. For the advocates of stem cell research, the risk is all worth it if it means providing medication for some of the world’s diseases that has been plaguing mankind, in addition to the other possibilities offered by the technology. The eventual stand of society on this issue will definitely play a major role in man’s progress.WORKS CITEDEdelson, Ed. â€Å"Trials Show Stem-Cell Therapy Benefits Heart-Attack Patients.† MedicineNet.com Retrieved Feb. 17, 2007 at:http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=64263Genetic Science Learning Center. University of Utah. What are the Risks of Cloning? 2006.Retrieved Feb. 15, 2007 at: http://gslc.genetics.utah.edu/units/cloning/cloningrisks/Human Stem Cell Research. S.B. No. 1351. A Bill for an Act. The Senate Twenty-ThirdLegislature 2005. State of Hawaii. Retrieved Feb. 17, 2007 at:http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2005/bills/sb1351_.htmMcFeatters, A. Despite veto threat, House OKs stem cell work. May 2005   Post-Gazette National Bureau.   Retrieved Feb. 17, 2007 at:http://www.postgazette.com/pg/05145/509887.stmSuper-Thin Membrane Design Opens Possibility For Better Dialysis, Fuel Cells, Neuro-StemCell Cultivation. Retrieved Feb. 18, 2007.http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=63140Women Who Donate Eggs For Stem Cell Research Face Few Health Risks, Institute OfMedicine Report Says. Feb. 13, 2007. Retrieved Feb. 18, 2007.http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=62762