The advances that have been made in the field of medicine over the past few decades are truly amazing. Diseases and complications that used to cause millions of deaths are now routinely treated. Organs are transplanted and it is even possible to perform surgery on unborn babies. The list goes on and on and at the same time research continues unabated. Bone marrow transplants are of particular interest to many and stem cell therapy centers say that they are working at a major breakthrough.
The concept of bone marrow transplant is not a recent one. These transplants have been performed for a long time. Until now, however, only those that suffer from leukemia and other blood related cancers qualified. The chemo therapy that these patients receive indiscriminately destroys all the healthy and diseased blood cells and with the transplants it is hoped that the growth of new and healthy blood cells will be encouraged. Sadly, the success rate is low.
It is a common misconception that bone marrow transplants are a cure for cancer. It is not. However, scientists believe that it eventually will become a cure. They think that these transplants will cure not only cancers related to the blood, but many other types too. Progress in this field is very slow do to the painstaking nature of the processes employed, unfortunately, and positive results are definitely still some years in the future.
It is not just a cure for cancer that is sought by scientists. They also place a high priority on researching the possibility that bone marrow transplants will be effective in the stimulation of new brain cells. The idea is that transplants will be used to generate new brain cells to replace those damaged and destroyed by diseases such as Alzheimer, brain injuries and spinal injuries.
Another area of great interest to research is heart disease. Conditions related to the heart remain one of the biggest killers in the world. It is hoped that bone marrow transplants will also be able to replace damaged and destroyed cells inside the heart, thereby reversing the course of many types of heart disease. It is still early days, however, and positive results are still a number of years into the future.
All is not roses, however. There are many critics that are of the opinion that researchers in this area is on a path that can lead to no positive results. They confront researchers by challenging them to provide a shred of evidence that bone marrow transplants have benefited a single patient. It has not, they say and besides, these transplants are extremely risky. Bone marrow transplants are not the future of medicine, critics say.
Critics are particularly concerned about the fact that the cells used during these transplants are routinely harvested from the umbilical cords of unborn babies. This is a major ethical dilemma, they say. Not only is the life of the unborn baby endangered, but there is also the awful possibility that women will become pregnant for the sole purpose of selling the cells harvested.
Despite the controversy surrounding bone marrow transplants many people still remain excited about the possibilities that it offers. If only a fraction of the expectations of researchers come true, millions of lives will be saved. Unfortunately, it is still years before any such results will be possible.
The concept of bone marrow transplant is not a recent one. These transplants have been performed for a long time. Until now, however, only those that suffer from leukemia and other blood related cancers qualified. The chemo therapy that these patients receive indiscriminately destroys all the healthy and diseased blood cells and with the transplants it is hoped that the growth of new and healthy blood cells will be encouraged. Sadly, the success rate is low.
It is a common misconception that bone marrow transplants are a cure for cancer. It is not. However, scientists believe that it eventually will become a cure. They think that these transplants will cure not only cancers related to the blood, but many other types too. Progress in this field is very slow do to the painstaking nature of the processes employed, unfortunately, and positive results are definitely still some years in the future.
It is not just a cure for cancer that is sought by scientists. They also place a high priority on researching the possibility that bone marrow transplants will be effective in the stimulation of new brain cells. The idea is that transplants will be used to generate new brain cells to replace those damaged and destroyed by diseases such as Alzheimer, brain injuries and spinal injuries.
Another area of great interest to research is heart disease. Conditions related to the heart remain one of the biggest killers in the world. It is hoped that bone marrow transplants will also be able to replace damaged and destroyed cells inside the heart, thereby reversing the course of many types of heart disease. It is still early days, however, and positive results are still a number of years into the future.
All is not roses, however. There are many critics that are of the opinion that researchers in this area is on a path that can lead to no positive results. They confront researchers by challenging them to provide a shred of evidence that bone marrow transplants have benefited a single patient. It has not, they say and besides, these transplants are extremely risky. Bone marrow transplants are not the future of medicine, critics say.
Critics are particularly concerned about the fact that the cells used during these transplants are routinely harvested from the umbilical cords of unborn babies. This is a major ethical dilemma, they say. Not only is the life of the unborn baby endangered, but there is also the awful possibility that women will become pregnant for the sole purpose of selling the cells harvested.
Despite the controversy surrounding bone marrow transplants many people still remain excited about the possibilities that it offers. If only a fraction of the expectations of researchers come true, millions of lives will be saved. Unfortunately, it is still years before any such results will be possible.
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