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Panel Detail:
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
11:00 AM - 12:15 PM
The State of Stem Cell Research
Speakers:
R. Alta Charo,
Warren P. Knowles Professor of Law and Bioethics, University of Wisconsin, Madison
John McNeish,
Executive Director, Pfizer Regenerative Medicine
Brock Reeve,
Executive Director, Harvard Stem Cell Institute
Alan Trounson,
President, California Institute for Regenerative Medicine
Moderator:
Margaret Anderson, Chief Operating Officer, FasterCures / The Center for Accelerating Medical Solutions
Stem cells have enormous potential to shape the future of medicine but may not live up to the hype, according to a panel of experts.
"Tremendous work is going on right now at the speed it should be going on," John McNeish said. However, the hype is more than is warranted at the moment, according to Brock Reeve.
He said patients are seeking out scientists to participate in their clinical trials, even when such trials are many years and millions of dollars away. Alan Trounson agreed, saying the public does not understand the long gap between creative science and drugs that are ready for clinical trials.
"In my opinion, there’s almost been a conspiracy of hype," R. Alta Charo said. The controversial nature of federally funded stem cell research led patient groups to over-promote the potential of stem cells to press their case for funding, she said. Sympathetic politicians did the same to their constituents, setting off a chain reaction that has slightly distorted the scientific reality.
At the same time, it's important to remember the huge potential that stem cells hold, McNeish said, particularly in pre-clinical drug testing. Animal testing is a vital part of drug research, but translating a drug's effectiveness from animals to humans is extremely unpredictable.
McNeish said it generally takes at least $100 million to get a drug into clinical testing. It is exactly for that reason, Reeve said, that the ability of stem cells to better replicate real human conditions in laboratory settings is so crucial. Stem cells could save billions of dollars and years of research by catching problems before clinical testing, benefiting both pharmaceutical companies and consumers.
This potential has become much easier to pursue since President Obama eased federal restrictions on embryonic stem cell research, the panelists agreed. "We are entering a massive growth phase, where there will be terrific opportunities for people to engage," Trounson said, citing both venture capitalists and pharmaceutical companies.
Reeve said much of the progress is because of the simplification of the current patchwork of research laws across different states. "If you’re trying to move significant research forward, having that sort of variation … just gets in the way," Reeves said, mentioning the crucial need for collaboration among researchers.
Soon, Charo said, it will become clear whether the limit on progress was the lack of funds and scientists to move forward, or the science itself.
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