Averi Best
Dr. Lape
English 2367
May 2, 2012

Funding Stem Cell Research in America For numerous years, whether or not the United States should put forth federal funding for stem cell research has been a very controversial topic. It is well known that stem cells can aide in the treatment to many diseases and injuries that there are currently no treatments for such as spinal cord injuries that could lead to paralysis, Parkinson's disease, cancer, diabetes, and the list goes on and on. So why has America not agreed to jump on the idea of funding what has been referred to as a potential miracle cure all? There are numerous reasons people still seem to be opposed to the idea of stem cell research that span from not knowing what stem cells actually are, to not understanding everything they could help cure, to being ethically opposed to using stem cells and the way in which they are obtained. Although there are naysayers, according to a study done by Research America that is published on their website as a graph, 61% of Americans are for the federal funding of stem cell research. (Research America) That is the majority and over half of those polled that agreed to furthering this cause. Although there is currently research that uses stem cells going on, it can only be funded through private parties or donors. This does not provide research facilities with enough money to test what stem cells can really do like federal funding would allow. There have been many contributions to medicine with the little amount of stem cell research done already. Stem cells are currently used to treat many health issues such as spinal cord injuries, neurological disorders, Lou Gehrig's disease, and bone marrow transplants among other things and there are still trials currently yet slowly being conducted. (National Institutes of Health) With more funding, more trials could take place at a faster rate and more advances in medical science could be discovered. We've hardly began to touch on all of the wonders stem cells could bring due to lack of federal funding. In the scientific community, stem cell research is largely pushed for and many scientists say that they can no longer further their research with the few stem cells they are provided with. One main misconception people have about stem cells is what they actually are and where it is that they come from. This may be a potential reason that some people do not support federally funding this type of research. Stem cells are a type of cell called pluripotent, and they can be found all living organisms. These cells are self-generated and can reproduce and repair themselves if they are damaged or need to be multiplied. They have no predetermined job and can form into any type of cell ranging from blood cells, to tissue cells, to nerve cells. That is why they are so desirable for medicine, they can become any cell and help repair the area that they are needed for and only have an affect on that one area. There are three types of stem cells which are adult stem cells, perinatal stem cells, and embryonic stem cells and they all come from different places. (National Institutes of Health) According to an article called “Adult Stem Cells” by Dr. David A. Prentice, “The term “adult cell” is somewhat of a misnomer, because the cells are present even in infants and similar cells exist in umbilical cord and placenta.” Adult stem cells, also referred to as induced pluripotent stem cells, are what is most often used in current stem cell research because they are the easiest to obtain with the current laws set and they are most ethically approved of. Until recently, the were discarded as not being as useful as the other types of stem cells because they hadn't yet discovered these stem cells could be made to work for other parts of the body. These cells can be found in small numbers and taken from the abundant amount of adult tissues that line a large portion of the body such as bone marrow and blood