Today on Capitol Hill, some people who have been helped by treatments using adult stem cells shared their stories.
Their stories stand in stark contrast to the total lack of treatments produced by research using life-destroying embryonic stem-cell research.
Doctors told Doug Rice he had two years to live because of congestive heart failure. That was eight years ago and before he learned about a treatment in Thailand that was discovered thanks to research using noncontroversial adult stem cells.
“This stuff just flat works," he said. "If you were to see me before I went to Bangkok, you would have thought I was ready to die. My skin was grey, I had to sleep sitting up. And now I sleep lying down, I can walk pretty much as far as I want to walk, and I feel good.”
Rice said he wouldn’t be alive if he relied on the research involving embryonic stem cells.
“Embryonic stem cells don’t work," he said. "Odds are, they may never work, and all the money they spend on that is just tremendous.”
Adult stem-cell research has produced more than 70 treatments. David Prentice, senior fellow for life sciences at the Family Research Council, said that's where money needs to be invested.
“This is just such an important issue that we need to continue to try and get to the public that it’s the adult stem cells that not only hold the promise, but are already delivering on it.”
He told Family News in Focus it's time for the U.S. to get on board with using more adult stem-cell therapies.
“We really are behind," he said, "and it’s because of this push for the embryonic stem-cell research in the U.S.”
