i thought that now might be a good time to dust the ole paper and give it a reprint and see if it still holds up...lemme know, ok?
Stem Cells, Cloning-the Science behind all of the Rhetoric
Out there on the political battlefield, sides have been taken, round after round has been fired, causalities sustained by both sides, but in my view, everything is obliterated by a shroud of smoke which fills the air and makes it almost impossible to think straight. The cause of this smokescreen is language: words that are as powerful as flamethrowers and words that ignite fierce reactions from both sides.
I am Joan Snyder. Many of you know me as a wife and mom and a parishioner at St. Edward Catholic Church in Chillicothe, IL. Still others know me as a 51 year old woman who has been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease for 13 years; an activist and a fundraiser. Those who know me at all, know that for years I have been walking a tightrope between the controversial, moral and ethical problems that have surrounded those with my disease, Alzheimer's (which killed my father), ALS, spinal chord injury, heart disease, diabetes and other devastating diseases that could possibly be cured with the stem cell research and the cloning going on now in the science community.
I am hoping that medical research has finally given us an answer which will ultimately allow me to feel both that I have not compromised my Catholic Pro-Life beliefs nor have I turned my back on the many thousands of fellow PWP's (People With Parkinson's) whom I have gotten to know in person and on the web-looking at them as if in a mirror, watching their slow, downward progression mimic mine.
Let us begin with definitions of some of the scariest words out there:
STEM CELLS-Undifferentiated, primitive cells with the ability both to multiply and to differentiate into specific kinds of cells. Stem cells hold the promise of allowing researchers to grow specialized cells or tissue, which could be used to treat injuries or disease. There are different types of stem cells and different ways of harvesting (gathering these precious cells). I will talk about these differences later.
CLONING-Cloning is the creation of multiple copies of a single molecule, cell or virus. There are many types of cloning, most of which are now commonplace in science. Cloning has allowed scientists to develop powerful new drugs and to produce insulin and useful bacteria in the lab. It also allows researchers to track the origins of biological weapons, catch criminals and free innocent people and produce more plants and animals to an undernourished world population.
REPRODUCTIVVE CLONING-is the use of cloning technology to create a child. It entails taking a fertilized egg and implanting it into a woman's uterus. I find the entire concept abhorrent, immoral and completely unethical. I think that this kind of research should be shut down and it is something that should be banned right away.
THERAPEUTIC CLONING /SCNT (SOMATIC CELL NUCLEAR TRANSFER)-this involves removing the contents of an UNFERTILIZED egg cell, replacing it with the nucleus of a "somatic cell" (a skin, heart, or a nerve cell for example) and stimulating this cell to begin dividing. Once the cell begins dividing, stem cells can be extracted 5-6 days later and used for research. SCNT does NOT utilize a fertilized egg and it does NOT produce an embryo to be implanted in a woman's womb therefore SCNT does NOT produce a child.
The words "stem cell" create a powerful, explosive reaction in people on both sides of the abortion issue. The fact is that stem cells are in our own blood, fat tissues, and perhaps many other parts of our bodies. These are adult stem cells which have already differentiated themselves into the kind of cell that they have become. It is thought that with further research, these may be part of a cure for disease.but no one knows for sure.
There are also stem cells that can be harvested from umbilical cord blood which is routinely discarded after a baby is born. Around the nation, cord blood banks are being set up to help doctors and families donate their umbilical cord for research.
Dr. Michel Levesque has been doing work which uses the patient's own neural stem cells. He removed neural stem cells from the patient's brain, cultured them in the lab for months to produce several million stem cells and then implanted them into the part of the brain that is affected by the lack of dopamine producing cells. Thus far, his work holds tremendous promise and then there is the research being conducted right here in Peoria by Dr. Rick Weber who is an Associate Professor of Immunopharmacology and Microbiology here at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, who is working on his project which involves activated leukacytes utilizing the white blood cells of the patient's own blood.
The problem lies herein-at the very mention of the words stem cells, people tend to forget that there are many kinds of stem cells out there that need to be researched. Embryonic stem cells are the flashpoint that both sides of the abortion issue are reacting to when stem cells are mentioned. These must be harvested from the embryos which are aborted. I cannot reconcile taking a life for giving a life. There are serious trains of thought being argued about the "leftover" embryos that are created by a couple using in-vitro fertilization and which are routinely destroyed by clinics and hospitals each day. It is at this point that the clouds of uncertainty roll in:
Which is more pro-life: to allow the continued destruction of these embryos which will never become children because they are destined never to be transplanted in a woman's womb? Or is it more pro-life to use these discarded embryos to start new stem cell lines for research thus giving them meaning and dignity?. I have to admit to not knowing the answer to this thorny and moralistic hot potato, but I can tell you that years of watching this disease take my friends away, little by little.sometimes makes me question my own beliefs.
So, this brings us back to the issue of cloning. I maintain that there is a world of difference between reproductive cloning-something which should be banned immediately and therapeutic cloning. Therapeutic cloning offers great promise for curing deadly and terrible diseases. Therapeutic cloning saves lives; it doesn't create lives.
I'm hoping that I have helped somewhat in clearing up some of the misconceptions and maybe hold out some hope that there may be some common ground where the pro-life and the pro-choice people can come together in a combined effort to eradicate the devastation and the suffering of so many.
joan blessington snyder 55/17'
www.calipso-pd,org
'Hang tough.......no way through it but to do it."
Chris in the Morning Northern Exposure
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