August 26, 1999

Stem Cell Research Too Important To Delay - Panel
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Research on stem cells -- parent cells that can
give rise to any type of cell in the body -- is too important to throw
aside because of ethical concerns, the world's largest federation of
scientists said Wednesday.

A report issued jointly by the American Association for the Advancement
of Science (AAAS) and the nonprofit Institute for Civil Society (ICS)
says currently federal guidelines are sufficient for overseeing stem
cell research.

But the report adds that everyone should have a say in such a debate,
even while the research moves ahead.

``We share the enthusiasm of others that such studies will offer the
real possibility for cures and treatments for many diseases for which
adequate therapies do not exist,'' it reads.

``To realize the potential health benefits of stem cell technology will
require a large and sustained investment in research. The federal
government is the only realistic source for such an infusion of funds.''

Researchers say stem cells can be used to grow tissue transplants to
treat patients with diseases such as PARKINSON'S or diabetes, in testing
and for basic biological research.

Ronald McKay of the National Institutes of Health, one of the early
discoverers of stem cells, said the research could open up entire new
areas of medicine.

``One has to be very careful about restricting peoples' ability to
investigate. Why shouldn't somebody go and work with these cells if they
work within ethical norms?'' he asked.

But some groups object to their source. Some stem cells come from
adults -- found in the blood, brain and other tissue. Others come from
aborted fetuses and some come from embryos left over from laboratory
fertilization attempts.

Embryonic stem cells are considered the easiest to manipulate and
scientists say they may have more potential.

Critics say deriving the cells from embryos destroys a potential human
life. Current federal law forbids federal funding of research that might
destroy a human embryo.

The National Bioethics Advisory Commission, which advises President
Clinton on such matters, is poised to recommend that the law be loosened
to allow federally funded scientists to derive such cells themselves.

But the White House has said it would be happy with the current state of
affairs, in which government-funded scientists can work with the cells
if private labs obtain them.

The AAAS report backs this view.

``We came to the conclusion that the derivation or sourcing of these
cells can be separated from their use,'' Ronald Green, a professor of
ethics at Dartmouth College, told a news briefing. ``A person could work
with these cell lines in good conscience.''

Green said the issue could get bogged down in debate. ``So in order to
expedite research to get it moving forward within the existing framework
and laws ... we need to separate it.''

Green pointed out that human embryos are discarded every day whether
stem cell research uses them or not.

Dr. Thomas Okarma, president and chief executive officer of Geron Corp
(Nasdaq:GERN - news) ., which funds stem cell research, said his company
and partners doing research at the University of Wisconsin had cultures
of the cells ready to ship to any federally funded researchers who need
them.

``The company and the university are ready to distribute these cells as
widely as possible,'' he said.

Audrey Chapman, a religious ethicist at the AAAS who helped write the
report, said the debate over stem cells sometimes obscured the facts.
``One of the major obstacles is how emotional people get. They don't
listen and they don't learn,'' she said in an interview.

``Many people who express a point of view don't understand the science
and the law,'' she added. ``Even in conservative religious groups, there
are major differences of opinion among theologians and ethicists.''

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