Stem Cell Treatment Centers Hold Great Promise

By Eric Davis


Medical science has progressed in leaps and bounds. Many diseases have been conquered during the past few decades. Diseases that use to instil dread are now treated without fuss and many millions of people enjoy longer lives thanks to the ever advancing medical field. Research continues unabated and there is every reason to hope for even more revolutionary breakthroughs in the future. Stem cell treatment centers, for example, hope to achieve the next major victory over disease and human suffering.

There is a lot of excitement about bone marrow transplants but this is not really new technology. These transplants have been performed for some years, but to date the only recipients of transplants were patients that suffer from blood related cancers. These patients routinely receive chemo therapy where all cells are indiscriminately destroyed. The bone marrow transplants aim to encourage the growth of new, healthy cells.

At present, bone marrow transplants do not effect a cure in cancer patients, but there is no doubt that they increase the life expectancy of those patients. Researchers are convinced that transplants will eventually cure blood related cancers and many other medical conditions too. Unfortunately, progress is extremely slow. Bone marrow transplants pose many potential dangers and numerous tests will have to be performed before trials on humans can even be contemplated.

Because the purpose of bone marrow transplants is to encourage the growth of new, healthy cells, scientists hope that this form of treatment will be effective in curing diseases and conditions that are caused by tissue or cell damage. They believe that it will become possible to reverse the damage caused to the brain by serious conditions such as Alzheimer and strokes. Other forms of brain damage may also one day be reversed.

The regeneration of tissue by growing new cells also raise high hopes that bone marrow transplants will one day be able to reverse damage done to the heart due to a variety of heart conditions. Heart diseases remains one of the major causes of death in developed countries. If bone marrow transplants truly succeed in treating some of these conditions, millions of patients will get a new lease on life.

All is not roses and sunshine, however. Research in this area has many enemies. There main concern is the fact that these transplants can use blood taken from the umbilical cords of babies yet to be born to substitute for real bone marrow. This, critics say, is an abomination that will lead to very serious abuse of human life, especially the lives of innocent infants not even born yet.

Critics are also accusing researchers of jumping the gun. They say that any practical and useful results from this field of research are still many years away. Critics have accused scientists of deliberately creating expectations in order to secure more research funding. Centres currently offering transplants are gambling with the lives of their patients, critics also say. The procedure is simply too dangerous and the results are most certainly not guaranteed.

The fact remains that the dreams of bone marrow transplant researchers are exciting. If these treatment methods ever become reality, millions of people will benefit. One can only hope that ongoing research produce the results that the entire world is so eagerly anticipating.




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