By Ruth Carter


During the past few decades, astonishing progress has been made in the field of medicine. As recent as the early nineteen hundreds, for example, people often died due to infections that can now be treated with antibiotics. Many other diseases that used to be a certain death sentence can now be cured or at least managed. Huge amounts are still spent on ongoing research to find cures for many different diseases. Stem cell therapy centers, for example, may just make breakthroughs that would truly astonish the world.

Bone marrow transplant is not a new revolutionary treatment method. It has been around for some years, but until now, only patients suffering from blood related cancers such as leukaemia and lymphoma benefited. These patients received transplants to encourage the growth of new cells to replace those that were destroyed by chemotherapy. These transplants also help to bolster the immunity system which is also weakened by chemotherapy.

While patients suffering from certain types of cancer have most certainly benefited from bone marrow transplants, researchers firmly believe that these transplants will soon become a miracle treatment method for may other types of disease. Unfortunately, progress is slow because it is a very difficult field of research and their are numerous obstacle that need to be overcome before human patients can be treated.

Because bone marrow transplants promote the growth of new, healthy cells, it is hoped that they will one day be effective in treating debilitating brain degeneration diseases such as Parkinson and Alzheimer. It would also be used to reverse the damage done by strokes. It is believed that transplants will even be considered to treat brain damage and physical injuries to the spine.

It is also possible that many different types of heart diseases will be treated by means of transplants. As it is, heart disease is rampant in most developed countries. Researchers believe that damaged cells and blood vessels inside the heart can be replaced by new and healthy cells and vessels. If this becomes a reality, it will mean a major step forward and new hope for millions of patients.

Not everyone is excited about the potential benefits of bone marrow transplants. There are those that say that this treatment method is almost certain to lead to highly unethical medical practices. This is because it is common practice to use blood from the umbilical cords of babies not yet born in the place of actual bone marrow during transplants. Critics say this may lead to a situation where women will become pregnant solely to become donors.

Many highly regarded critics are of the opinion that researchers in this field are creating false hope by misleading the general public about current progress. They do this to secure more funds for research and to keep a healthy interest in this topic alive. Facilities offering this treatment are nothing but profit centres, critics say, and patients do not understand the extremely high risk of undergoing bone marrow transplants.

If researchers are to be believed, mankind is on the verge of conquering many diseases. This will certainly improve the quality of life for millions for people. One can only hope that current research delivers on the promises of the research teams.




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