NRL News
Page 2
April 2009
Volume 36
Issue 4

“I Think, Oprah, the Stem Cell Debate Is Dead”
BY Dave Andrusko

Given where it showed up, had the March 31 program aired one day later, your first impulse would have been this must be an April Fool’s joke. An announcement that actually paid attention to the science, rather than bowed to ideology, was made on, of all places, Oprah.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, an Oprah regular, announced that there will be a cure for Parkinson’s disease within “our lifetime” and “a big impact in the lives of Parkinson’s disease, but also diabetics, heart attack victims, people who have had a lot of problems” within “single-digit years.”

Sitting between Dr. Oz and Oprah was actor Michael J. Fox, a victim of Parkinson’s. Fox’s crusade on behalf of using embryonic stem cells (ESC) has not exactly been leavened with kind words about those who oppose ESC on ethical grounds (it’s indefensible) and pragmatic grounds (there are far better alternatives).

So had you missed the first few minutes you would have expected another pep talk about why ESC is the answer. Not so.

Holding the brain of a 50-year-old man to illustrate his points, Oz gave a quick and helpful overview of how it works as well as explaining the underlying problem for people with Parkinson’s. (It’s associated with a decline in the production of the brain chemical dopamine.)

Then, in fine professorial form, Oz illustrated the theory behind the use of embryonic stem cells by poking a needle through the brain to the area where the ESCs would theoretically be injected. While nice in theory, in practice ESCs are (my words) like unruly adolescents who run every which way, including in the direction of causing cancers.

Then Oz said this: “Now, I’m going to say something that’s going to be a bit provocative. I think, Oprah, the stem cell debate is dead, and I’ll tell you why.”

Oz prefaced his explanation by exclaiming enthusiastically that there has been a “huge amount of change made,” the equivalent of “10 years” worth of advancement in the last year. Turns out there is an orderly and productive alternative.

He never called the primary change by its real name—iPS (induced pluripotent stem) cells. Instead, he showed it.

Taking Fox’s hand, Oz said, “Here’s what the deal is. I can take a little bit of your skin, take those cells, get them to go back in time [into becoming iPS cells] so they are like they were when you were first made, and then they will start to make that dopamine; and I think those cells, because they won’t be as prone to cancer, and because they’re your genes, will be the ones that are ultimately used to cure Parkinson’s.” (His emphasis.)

After discussing the great improvements and eventual cure, he added, “And that’s exciting to all of us in medicine.”

But it ought to be exciting to anyone who values truth, honesty, and candor. What can someone with those commitments take away from Dr. Oz’s explanation?

That it’s time to dip into the tool case and go full bore with what is working—iPS cells and stem cells from adult sources—and junk the rest.

You can watch the video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDFJOzu9SyM.