Say the words “stem cells” these days and you are likely to get side-swiped with a barrage of opinions, political stances, and ethical points of view on the topic.  Because stem cell research hasn’t reached any major medical breakthroughs, public opinion is split in America.

But what about other countries?  How are they weighing in on this grand debate, especially ones that could become new superpowers as the century progresses?

Well, for China at least, the issue seems just as complex as the United States, but for different reasons.  Chinese stem cell research for spinal cord injury and paralysis treatments appears to be moving along much faster and with better results than in America, yet numerous charlatans have come out of the woodwork and government officials do not want to take the ground-breaking findings seriously.

To be clear, our paralysis attorneys have no opinion one way or another on the issue of stem cell harvesting.  Our hope is that stem cell research has the potential to make significant advancements in paralysis treatments.  By using stem cell tissue to rebuild vertebrae after spinal cord injuries, they can make living with paralysis a thing of the past and give tangible hope for those who become paralyzed in a serious accident.

Chinese stem cell research shows positive results that health officials are not taking as serious (Source: www.theeconomist.com)

So what’s China’s hang-up?  Chinese researchers are making progress and finding new ways to get stem cells and use them to improve health.  Unfortunately, government officials are hesitant to endorse large-scale stem cell treatment amid cost concerns.

The Chinese health officials claim that stem cell research and medical treatment on one person would be around $20,00o.  Still, over two-dozen treatment centers around China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan — called the China Spinal Cord Injury Network — have conducted studies are coming close to proving that a combination of lithium and stem cells from umbilical-cord blood transplanted on a spinal cord injury will make the condition improve greatly.

One can understandable why the Chinese would be on-guard.  There was the case of South Korean researcher Hwang Woo-suk that tooted his own horn by announcing that he had manipulated stem cells in such a way that he was able to clone human embryos, only to be exposed as a hack and a liar.  How many other scientists are looking to make stem cells their claim to fame and at what cost?  Time will tell.

For our paralysis attorneys, the hope is that China will fund more stem cell research and find a way to do it in such an affordable way that other countries will see the benefits of such studies, so much so that they adopt it in the policy in their nation.  Perhaps in the future super power will not be determined by who has more nuclear arms or a bigger military defense-system, but by who has the answers to healing the human body.

If you or a loved one have suffering a spinal cord injury, we urge you to contact our bilingual offices as soon as possible following the accident at 1-858-551-2090 or please click here for a free consultation with an experienced paralysis attorney. Our initial telephone or office consultation is FREE and CONFIDENTIAL. We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that you do not pay anything until we recover money on your behalf.

YOUR TAKE

What are your feelings on stem cells?  Do you think that China should move ahead with stem cell research despite the cost, and more importantly, do you feel that stem cell research is progressing more or less than it was five years ago?