Ray I sense a 'deep' depression...

Don't ever give up gal!! Your efforts are globally applauded :-))

Regards,

Nic 57/15




On Tue, Mar 10, 2009 at 9:26 PM, rayilynlee <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> The fight is not over; it has just begun.
> and I'm very tired.
>
> Ray
>
> Susan L. Solomon
> CEO, The New York Stem Cell Foundation
> Posted March 9, 2009 | 11:37 AM (EST)
>
> For the last eight years, human embryonic stem cell research -- which is
> improving our understanding of how we can treat and defeat diseases such as
> Parkinson's and diabetes -- has been a hostage of presidential politics.
> Monday's executive order by President Barack Obama changes that, lifting
> many restrictions on federal funding for research on new stem cell lines
> derived from human embryos. Unfortunately, this stroke of the pen does not
> remove key legislative hurdles that will continue to prevent federal dollars
> from being spent on this critical science.
> Stem cell research represents the most revolutionary area of medical
> research today, opening possibilities for treating cancer, diabetes, Lou
> Gehrig's disease, blindness and paralysis. The previous administration's ban
> cost researchers precious time in the race for new cures, treatments and
> discoveries. TIME magazine recently cited a New York Stem Cell
> Foundation-funded breakthrough by Dr. Kevin Eggan as the most significant
> scientific achievement in 2008. Because of the ban on federal funding, this
> groundbreaking work was only possible through the generosity of private
> donors.
>
> President Obama's symbolic decision to address this transforming medical
> issue will ultimately give laboratories nationwide new resources to change
> lives. But while the new administration brings a refreshingly friendly
> attitude toward science, in general, and stem cell research in particular,
> researchers will still lack easy access to the full range of possibilities
> that stem cells present.
> Significant obstacles remain in the path of stem cell research progress.
> The president possesses unilateral authority only to allow federal funding
> of research on new and existing embryonic stem cell lines -- he cannot
> single-handedly green-light federal funding to create the stem cell lines
> themselves. That's because Congress in 1996 banned the use of human embryos,
> even those discarded in fertility clinics or voluntarily made for scientific
> purposes, for research purposes -- including the creation of embryonic stem
> cells. That piece of legislation, the so-called Dickey-Wicker Amendment, is
> inextricably linked to abortion politics, and is unlikely to be removed from
> the books in the near future.
>
> It is crucial to our ultimate success to allow wide access to all of the
> stem cell lines that have already been created from embryos, as well as to
> continue to create new lines for comparative and other purposes, including
> the research that can only be done with human embryonic stem cells.
> Researchers throughout the world feel that the new "induced pluripotentiary
> stem cells" (iPS for short) are powerful tools for scientists studying the
> mechanisms of human disease in their laboratories. However, scientists agree
> that human embryonic stem cells remain the "gold standard" of research,
> making the production of new stem cells of urgent importance.
> Private funding sources like NYSCF, which are by nature far more nimble
> than government agencies, are still essential to advancing stem cell
> research. Private philanthropy is, and will continue to be, a critical and
> necessary driver of the most innovative and promising stem cell science.
> We cannot continue to ask our best scientists to work with one hand tied
> behind their backs. Finding better treatments and cures for these terrible
> diseases is urgent work. The New York Stem Cell Foundation will continue to
> use private philanthropy to ensure that scientists are able to perform the
> experiments that simply wouldn't be funded or initiated elsewhere, which
> will continue to change the way scientists and the public view what is
> possible in this burgeoning medical area. And we hope that Congress will act
> quickly, once and for all, to put patients before politics by putting
> science first.
>
> Rayilyn Brown
> Director AZNPF
> Arizona Chapter National Parkinson Foundation
> [log in to unmask]
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