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I pulled these last two paragraphs out of a very long post because it supports my claim that very few ASC treatments are available today. If you are interested, email me and I will forward you the entire article or URL so you can access the source.. Ryan Ward et al. Ray from Kevin Graham's comment: "The author of the "six-part series" provides a link to his personal website (http://repairstemcells.org/Home.aspx). In an earlier post (December 15th, Principles of Responsible Translational Stem Cell Research) I detailed the disturbing trend of direct to patient marketing of stem cell therapies. I would encourage readers to read that post before linking to the repairstemcells.org site. The post discusses the issue of untested treatments being offered in foreign countries, often for great sums of money, with little or no scientific evidence to validate their claims. These websites prey upon the vulnerabilities of people that are desperate to relieve the suffering that can come from debilitating disease. This website is a very good example of this. The website is very professional and in some ways convincing in its "medical authority". Two facts though should quickly alert the reader to evaluate the information extremely critically. First, the "research papers" that support the treatments being offered are not in fact research papers. They are not peer-reviewed clinical trials, but rather slick marketing tools produced by the vendor of the medical services. Secondly, the true purpose of these websites is evident when you attempt to get specific treatment information about a particular disease and are informed of the $10 000 - $24 000 or greater USD cost for these services. I would encourage readers to critically evaluate any website or marketing tool that claims stem cell therapies, from any cellular source, are widely available for the treatment of many diseases. In truth, stem cell treatment is currently used clinically in a very limited set of circumstances, including the use of blood stem cells to repopulate the immune system after treatment of some forms of leukemia. Stem cell researchers are working hard, on all avenues of stem cell research (embryonic, iPS, and adult), and we remain optimistic that the knowledge we gain will be applied to human health issues in the future, but in the meantime talk to a trusted medical professional about treatment options that are properly tested and available today." Rayilyn Brown Director AZNPF Arizona Chapter National Parkinson Foundation [log in to unmask] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn