Man walks after stem cell treatment?
I’m not 100% sure about this news source (primarily since I haven’t read a lot of news from India), but it looks like there’s been a major stem cell victory on the other side of the world.
A 23-year-old man, who was paralysed from below the waist, is now able to walk after the first successful stem cell therapy in India for spinal cord injuries was conducted at a hospital here.
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He could not control his urine and bowel movements and was thus admitted to Lifeline Hospitals. The doctors there diagnosed him as a patient for autologous stem cell therapy wherein the stem cells from the patient’s body are taken and used at the injured spot.
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Two months into the therapy, Ali has now regained 50 per cent sensation below his waist. He can control his urine for up to two hours and can also walk.
Now whether this is a legitimate announcement or not (I’m sure it will be all hashed out by the end of the day), this is the promise that stem cell therapy offers. If you live in NY-25, don’t EVER forget that your local Congressman, Jim Walsh, voted against funding Stem Cell therapy ensuring that these medical miricles occur on the otherside of the world not at the U of R.
I hope this one is legit… even if it’s not, it’s only a matter of time before one is.
Let’s see … time for a clarification. The vote Walsh made was against the use of embryonic stem cells. It is the use of embryonic stem cells that most conservatives and Republicans are fighting against.
This particular development cited by RochesterTurning involves autologous stem cells, which are entirely different, and I presume not a concern of conservatives or Republicans. Google lists many therapies being tried with autologous stem cells, including one for Lou Gehrig’s disease.
You are correct, this was autologous stem cell therapy…my bad, however the point regarding Walsh remains the same. Even after Scientists discovered a way to harvest embryonic stem cells without destroying the fetus (removing a few extra cells when doing routine genetic tests, August 2006), Walsh still against expanding embryonic stem cell research (January 2007).
Now IF Indian article is true, then I’m glad the adult stem cell therapy worked out. However, lets not forger that right along scientists have believed there was much more promise in embryonic stem cells than adult ones.
Even after we started discovering ways to harvest stem cells without destroying the embryo, Congressman Walsh still voted against it… Unless Jimbo had a crystal ball and a doctorate in microbiology, I still think it was unconscionable for him to vote against that bill just to score some political points.
I am in complete agreement that there is not a good reason to vote against the use of embryonic stem cells. Or, to use your word, the vote was “unconscionable”.