Commentary: Adult Stem Cells Saved My Life

Adult stem cells are saving lives now and offering hope.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. (CNSNews.com) - Imagine a tragic automobile accident that leaves a young girl a quadriplegic. Imagine a young mother of two who discovers that a disease is ravaging her body and turning her vital organs into stone. Imagine a young baby who is dying from sickle cell anemia.

These are haunting images. They capture our minds and rend our hearts. Yet in each case, there is a remarkably happy ending.

Simply put, these patients didn't die, but cheated death and disability by receiving adult stem cell transplants. Each of these persons are medical miracles and living proof that adult stem cell treatments are treating patients who face a fatal sentence from a host of illnesses and injuries.

Adult stem cells are saving lives now and offering hope to patients with brain cancer, breast cancer, leukemias, lymphomas, heart damage, juvenile diabetes, spinal cord injury, sickle cell anemia, multiple sclerosis, and more than 70 other diseases. But the question many have is, "How?" Exactly what are these tiny biological entities that are bringing hope and healing to so many?

Adult stem cells are the "blank" cells of the body, essentially "shape-shifter" cells as they can regenerate and repair damaged cells and tissues. Adult stem cells are found in umbilical cords, placentas, and amniotic fluid. They are also found in adult tissues, bone marrow, liver, epidermis, retina, skeletal muscle, intestine, brain, dental pulp, and even fat from liposuctions.

The advances in adult stem cell research have been not only astounding in themselves but substantial in their reach. For that reason, on November 14, 2009 in Kansas City, Kansas, the Family Research Council is launching the "Adult Stem Cells Saved My Life" education & awareness campaign.

The Kansas City metropolitan area has become one of the strategic centers in the nation for the life sciences, including adult stem cell and umbilical cord blood research and treatments. Between St. Luke's Hospital, Children's Mercy Hospital, and the University of Kansas Medical Center, these pioneering treatment centers have treated over 1,500 patients with Adult Stem Cells.

Each patient treated with adult stem cells can tell a story of renewal and celebration. In Kansas City, attendees will hear the story of how adult stem cells saved a mother, so her daughters won't have to know the pain of growing up without her and how they saved a dying baby boy and spared parents from watching their son die.

Adult stem cell treatments don't just save patients, they save families.

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Adult stem cell treatments provide therapies and treatments now for patients who need them, now. The "Adult Stem Cells Saved My Life" campaign is designed to educate the public, policy makers, doctors, nurses, medical community, and patients who are seeking treatment about the medical advances of adult stem cell treatments.

To that end, FRC has developed an exciting new Web site where viewers can watch the stories of people whose lives have been saved and changed by adult stem treatments. The site can be found at www.stemcellresearchfacts.org.

Carron Morrow works up to 80 hours per week - after suffering her fourth heart attack. Why? Because in October 2006, after enrolling in an FDA-approved study at the Texas Heart Institute Stem Cell Center, bone marrow was removed from her hip and cultivated.

The cultivated stem cells were transplanted into the right side of her heart, which was heavily damaged. By the spring of 2007, her life was back to normal. Her doctor has confirmed that the damaged part of her heart is now normal.

Adult stem cells save lives. They heal families. And they offer hope to millions. Family Research Council is committed to advancing adult stem cell research and telling the stories of those who are finding new life through them. It's a pleasure to imagine that.

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