LIFE DIGEST: Adult stem cell success in Illinois woman
- Mar 2, 2010 -
Therapy with adult stem cells has another success story to report.
Jennifer Osman, 38, of Plainfield, Ill., has undergone an almost total recovery from the debilitating effects of a neurological disorder known as chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP). She was diagnosed with CIDP at 30 years of age, was nearing paralysis five years ago and faced likely death by age 40, according to The Joliet (Ill.) Herald-News.
Also in this edition: Marie Stopes’ abortion total jumps in 2009 and Spain liberalizes abortion law.
“She couldn’t do anything,” said Rick Osman, Jennifer’s husband, The Herald-News reported. “She couldn’t use her arms, couldn’t walk. I had to carry her to bed. Sometimes I had to feed her.”
CIDP ultimately could affect the nerves in her lungs and halt her breathing, the Osmans were told.
On April 1, she will celebrate five years since she received a transplant of her own stem cells in a study conducted by Richard Burt of Northwestern University’s medical school. Her immune system began rebuilding after the 2005 transplant, and she is almost free of any symptoms of the disorder, the newspaper reported.
“When I first came up with this idea . . . people said, ‘Why are you wasting your time?’ I ended up following my passion, and it’s been fabulous,” said Burt, who has performed research on stem cell treatments for autoimmune diseases for more than 20 years, according to The Herald-News.
He performed the first stem cell transplants in the United States for such autoimmune diseases as rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis, the newspaper reported. Medicare and several insurance agencies will provide coverage for the treatment, Burt said.
Marie Stopes’ abortion total jumps in 2009
Marie Stopes’ abortion total jumps in 2009
Marie Stopes International, which describes itself as a “not-for-profit sexual and reproductive health” organization, provided internationally last year 920,000 abortions, an astonishing 56 percent increase over 2008. That total included abortions by both surgery and drugs, such as RU 486.
The London-based organization cited increased support from such donors as the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) as part of the reason for the growth in abortion and contraceptive services.
The United States refused to support UNFPA during the final seven years of the administration of President George W. Bush because of the agency’s support of China’s coercive, population-control policy. During that time period, the administration withheld nearly $235 million of congressionally approved funds from the UNFPA as a result of Bush’s finding that the agency aided in a program of forced abortion and sterilization. Bush’s determination was based on the Kemp-Kasten Amendment, which was first approved in 1985.
Last year, however, President Barack Obama’s administration forwarded $50 million to the UNFPA.
Spain liberalizes abortion law
The legislature of the traditionally Roman Catholic country of Spain loosened restrictions on abortion Feb. 24.
Spain’s Senate gave final passage to legislation that permits abortion without limitations through the first trimester and enables 16 and 17 year olds to undergo the procedure without their parents’ consent, according to the Associated Press. Minors are required to inform their parents before receiving an abortion, although an exception is provided if they can demonstrate telling their parents would expose them to violence, coercion or threats.
Spanish law previously barred abortions except in cases of rape, through 12 weeks of pregnancy, and fetal deformity, through 22 weeks. In effect, however, abortions were easily obtained by claiming mental distress at any stage of pregnancy, AP reported.
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