Are Stem Cells The Future of Medicine?

Stem cells have long been prophesied to be the cure to all medical ailments since they were first discovered in mice in 1981. This hot area of research has come a long way since then, yet there are still no FDA proven stem cell treatments. Although many treatments have been shown to have great benefits, many have also come with large health risks to the patients. At this point, 30 years down the road, the question is, are stem cells still the cure of the future, or a thing of the past?

Stem cells are unique because unlike other cells, which are created to carry out one specific function, they can exist as cells without a specific function. These stem cells are essentially "blank" cells, which can be programmed to become a certain type of cell. They undergo symmetric or asymmetric cell division. Symmetric cell division produces two daughter cells with a desired function. Asymmetric cell division produces one cell that is identical to the parent cell and one that performs its programmed function. Asymmetric division is useful because it only requires one initial stem cell to create a virtually endless line of stem cells because after each division there is a new stem cell remaining.

Photo Courtesy of Andre Gorgens

The other cell produced by asymmetric cell division, which is programmed to carry out a certain function, will become one of many types of somatic cells in the human body, such as a nerve cell, a liver cell, or even a blood cell. This is why there was such hope in the medical field that stem cells could be the future cure to many prevalent diseases, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and many other blood related diseases.

For the most part, stem cells are currently being used for the treatment of less severe medical issues,such as male-pattern baldness, rather than for more severe diseases, as was hoped. Although the treatments for some of these more severe diseases do in fact exist, they are extremely expensive and not accessible to most. The reason for this is the way that stem cells are produced.

The cells most often used in effective stem cell treatments are embryonic stem cells. These cells come from human embryos, This means that embryonic stem cell availability is limited to the amount of embryos that are being created in in vitro fertilization clinics and donated to stem cell research programs. Also, embryonic stem cells have been the subject of controversy Many activist groups, often the same ones that are against abortion, have pushed back against the use of embryonic stem cells in medical treatments. As a result, from the years 1996 to 2007, stem cell researchers in the United States were restricted from receiving any federal funding, leaving them to rely solely on private donations. In many ways, this push back, which has had a serious legislative and cultural impact, has significantly slowed the research of stem cells and could very well be the reason why an efficient method of replicating and programming stem cells has not yet been discovered. While there are stem cells that are found in the adult body, which would seem to be an obvious solution to creating non-controversial stem cell treatments, they are much more difficult to program. Also, many researchers believe that they may cause harmful long-tern and short-term side effects, but more research needs to be done to prove this.

Photo Courtesy of San Francisco Chronicle

Luckily, stem cell research has continued and positive legislative change has come. In 2009, President Barack Obama issued an executive order allowing many stem cell researchers to begin receiving federal funding. Only 5 years later, the results of a groundbreaking trial showed that it was possible to restore vision in legally-blind patients using stem cell treatments. After seeing the renewed promise of stem cell use in medicine, research sped along at record pace. Fueled by legislation such as the 21st Century Cures Act, the field of stem cell research expanded greatly. Currently, the ISSCR (International Society for Stem Cell Research) has over 4,000 active stem cell researchers across the globe, looking for a way to make stem cell treatments more effective and more accessible. Although the study of stem cells has had its setbacks, with continued political and cultural attention, it can once again become the medical promise of the future.

Photo Courtesy of the Associated Press

President Obama signing the 21st Century Cures Act into law.