Missed Opportunities in Embryonic Stem-Cell Research . . .

[TaleWgnDg]

Well, here it is . . . from the horse’s mouth, so to speak . . .

1.) As a subscriber, I’ve received an email from The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), which is one of the foremost and most highly regarded medical peer review periodicals in America. Whenever there is something of importance NEJM believes, ethically, that it cannot wait for its usual publication date, the NEJM will publish that article earlier than the usual publication date of the NEJM journal.

The NEJM email states that an “early release . . . because of public interest in the topic, this article has been published early at www.nejm.org. It will appear in the August 12, 2004, issue of the Journal.” (quote from subscriber’s email received)

2.) http://content.nejm.org/cgi/reprint/NEJMp048200v1.pdf
(as of August 9, 2004)

“PERSPECTIVE: Missed Opportunities in Embryonic Stem-Cell Research, George Q. Daley, M.D., Ph.D.

“Three years have passed since August 9, 2001, when President George W. Bush drew a line in the sand: he announced that research on human embryonic stem cells created before that date would be supported by federal dollars; research on lines created later would not. The President’s policy has severely curtailed opportunities for U.S. scientists to study the cell lines that have since been established, many of which have unique attributes or represent invaluable models of human disease. . . .

“Some 128 new human embryonic stem-cell lines have been produced worldwide since the President’s announcement. . . . Though the federal government is the principal patron of peer-reviewed biomedical research, U.S. scientists studying these cell lines cannot obtain grant support through the National Institutes of Health (NIH); they must find funding from private foundations or philanthropic sources that seldom provide predictable, long-term support. . . .

“(However,)using the 21 lines (that are approved by GWBush which are) currently listed in the NIH registry, U.S. scientists are limited to exploring generic questions about human embryonic stem cells. . . .

“The Presidential challenger Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) has stated that he would overturn the Bush restrictions and allow federal funding for research involving any human embryonic stem cell line.”