Lehcar Posted November 17, 2011 Share Posted November 17, 2011 (edited) There's a distant cousin of mine... he's a very very handsome little boy, cute, with lovely brown eyes and sandy brown hair. Sadly... well, he's extremely mentally and physically disabled; his mother was in labor with him for an entire week because, for whatever reason, the doctors refused to do a C-section like they should have. As a result of his head being stuck for so long, his brain was deprived of blood, and as a result, it was severely and permanently damaged. It's especially tragic, because a simple, routine c-section would have saved him, and he could have been a perfectly healthy child... He's now a seven year old boy. He is unable to do anything for himself; he can't speak, he can't walk, he can't crawl, he can't sit up, he can't feed himself... his parents had no choice but to give him to a foster family because they simply were unable to provide him the special care he needs. For several years now he has been fostered and cared for by a lesbian couple, and they're absolutely wonderful - they can care for him, and they love him very dearly. And, also for several years, they have been desperately trying to get permission to take him to the United States for stem cell therapy, using his little sister's stem cells that were harvested from her umbilical cord blood, in hopes that it may, at least to some degree, improve the function of his brain and help it recover from the damage. However, the judge is an idiot and refuses to allow it. I don't know the reason why. But frankly, it upsets me, because there is no valid reason I can think of why this little boy should not have the stem cell therapy. If there is even a small chance that it may help him, I think it is more than worth it. Plus, the stem cells they intend to use were taken from his sister's cord blood right after she was born - what can possibly be wrong with that? Absolutely nothing, in my mind. Darn it, we need to put this wonderful medical technology to use to try and help people like him. :( Edited November 17, 2011 by Lehcar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marharth Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Honestly people are just afraid of change. Quite a few people can't get over themselves and get rid of their old values, even if it means it can save a life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lukertin Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Honestly people are just afraid of change. Quite a few people can't get over themselves and get rid of their old values, even if it means it can save a life.I'm sorry but I'm pretty sure there's still no science supporting the theory that fetal stem cells are capable of doing anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marharth Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Honestly people are just afraid of change. Quite a few people can't get over themselves and get rid of their old values, even if it means it can save a life.I'm sorry but I'm pretty sure there's still no science supporting the theory that fetal stem cells are capable of doing anything.Embryonic stem cells can generate any other cell type. That can be extremely helpful in treating nearly any serious disease. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lukertin Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 (edited) Embryonic stem cells can generate any other cell type. That can be extremely helpful in treating nearly any serious disease.Theoretically. There were no studies supporting its utility 5-10 years ago when the argument first arose, so unless something has changed recently... Edited November 18, 2011 by lukertin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marharth Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Embryonic stem cells can generate any other cell type. That can be extremely helpful in treating nearly any serious disease.Theoretically. There were no studies supporting its utility 5-10 years ago when the argument first arose, so unless something has changed recently...We know for sure that they can generate any other cell type. The research now is if humans can use them to do exactly what we want. The only way to get evidence of this is through research. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wyrdfire Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Research? There are a variety of emotionally driven arguments on this topic, so I'd like to ask what kind of stem cells are we talking about: adult or embryonic? (or even induced pluripotent cells) (see here and here) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marharth Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Research? There are a variety of emotionally driven arguments on this topic, so I'd like to ask what kind of stem cells are we talking about: adult or embryonic? (or even induced pluripotent cells) (see here and here)Adult stem cell research is not the controversial one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wyrdfire Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Adult stem cell research is not the controversial one. I know, that's why I am asking. If you feel we need more research on adult stem cells I can only agree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
draconix Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 Adult stem cell research is not the controversial one. I know, that's why I am asking. If you feel we need more research on adult stem cells I can only agree. If someone had read the first post, you might see that this is involving stem cells that come from cord blood, as in, not an aborted fetus... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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