Putting Oregon on the forefront of stem cell research

/Home/Diabetes Patient Education Resources/Diabetes Laws and Policy/Diabetes Laws and Policy - United States/Diabetes Laws and Policy - Oregon/Diabetes and Stem Cell Research in Oregon

Putting Oregon on the forefront of stem cell research
September 6, 2006
By State Representative Larry Galizio of Tigard, Oregon

On July 19th, 2006, President Bush vetoed legislation that would have lifted the funding restriction on embryonic stem cell research. In a letter to President Bush, a bipartisan group of more than 50 US Senators wrote that, embryonic stem cell research has the potential to help us better understand and treat deadly and disabling diseases and conditions. These conditions affect more than 100 million Americans including: cancer; heart disease; diabetes; Parkinson’s; Alzheimer’s; Multiple Sclerosis; spinal cord injuries, and others.

Despite the claims by opponents of embryonic stem cell research, adult stem cells simply do not possess the elasticity or flexibility of embryonic stem cells and therefore have a more limited potential to repair vital organs. Adult stem cells are also limited in their ability to be cultivated in a laboratory. In contrast, as explained by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Stem Cell Research Lab, “embryonic stem cells have a capacity to reproduce indefinitely in the laboratory.” (Embryonic Stem Cells: Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison)

Less often discussed, the federal government’s restrictive policy negatively impacts the scientific research process in other ways. As explained in a recent New York Times article, (Wade, N. 2006, August 14. “Some scientists see shift in stem cell hopes. Pp. A18) government-supported graduate students are prohibited from visiting the laboratories where privately funded stem cell research is taking place. Neurobiologist Christopher E. Henderson at the Columbia University Medical Center explains this segregation as necessary to avoid prosecution lest government-gained knowledge contribute to privately funded work. Collaboration being the sine qua non of scientific endeavors, the federal policy unnecessarily complicates efforts to integrate research on human cells with other relevant research.

Furthermore, while stem cell therapy constitutes the principle hope for scientists and their patients, many researchers champion embryonic stem cell research as critical to better understanding disease processes. Enhanced understanding of these terrible diseases in and of itself will benefit medical researchers seeking ways to help patients and improve public health.

The fact remains that the scientific community has just begun research in this exciting and promising area, and practical application will only be possible with additional study.

That is why I am drafting legislation that will place Oregon in the company of other states at the vanguard of stem cell research. While we may not have the $3 billion investment California has created, we will join our neighbors to the north, Washington State, in promoting cutting-edge scientific research with the potential to significantly improve public health and perhaps eradicate diseases plaguing over 100 million of our fellow citizens.

I stand with Senators Gordon Smith and Ron Wyden in supporting an increase in our public investment in embryonic stem cell research. And while I’m disappointed that President Bush has chosen to privilege politics and ideology over science, I am inspired by the legislative response to this federal veto by many of my colleagues in state houses throughout the U.S.

It is time for Oregon to join other states by investing in this promising research.