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-continued from part one- > > > > Ironically, the government's lifting of a ban on > federal funding for fetal tissue research has created > a new problem for researchers--a shortage of > funding for the costly procedure. > "When President Clinton lifted the ban last > January, many of our funding sources dried up > because they thought the federal government > would take over the funding," said Dr. D. Eugene > Redmond of Yale University. > But the government agency that funds most > medical researchthe National Institutes of Health-- > has funded only one program, at the University of > Colorado. Programs such as Redmond's and > Jacques' at Good Samaritan were left little money > to pay for the experimental surgery. "That's created > intense competition for money," Redmond said. > Impatient with funding delays, some patients who > would ordinarily have received the experimental > surgery at no cost have paid for the $40,000 > procedure themselves. Wenc's friends and former > customers raised the money for her surgery in three > months. > The patients are highly motivated to seek the > surgery because of the sever disabling effects of > Parkinson's disease, which affects between 500,000 > and 1 million Americans, most of them over age 55. > The disorder, whose cause is unknown, is > characterized by the time he was 48, he had to quit > his job. "The tremors were the worst part, but I > couldn't walk right either," he said. "I would freeze > in doorways and hallways. It would be almost a > total immobility." > Bahn heard about the Good Samaritan program > through a computer bulletin board operated by a > Parkinson's support group. After visiting Good > Samaritan, he was accepted into the program. > His surgery was performed Sept. 3,1992. "At first, I > was in a terrible state," he said. "I couldn't walk or > do anything else." It took nearly eight weeks > before he was back to the condition he had been in > at the time of the surgery. "Then I slowly started > noticing things improving. It was two steps > forward for every step back." Today, he drives his > car, works around the house and leads what he > considers a "largely normal" life. > > > -continued on part3-