Political Quotes

“I have recently been briefed on these two medical research efforts and would like to offer a couple of comments on their potential impact in combat casualty care. They are research initiatives by our research laboratories and universities across the country, which could provide a unique capability to develop new tissue products that are vitally important for the military. Recent U.S. military actions have resulted in stationing troops in harsh climates, from Kuwait to Bosnia to Saudi Arabia. Future locations and missions will require new capabilities in combat casualty care, and these capabilities would include stable blood products, organs, and wound repairing tissues that will enhance human survivability under conditions of trauma, shock, anoxia and other extreme conditions, including extreme environment. These projects aim to develop tissue with a long shelf life that are necessary for combat casualty care. Additionally, the research would serve as a large-scale source of murine models for the scientific community to utilize mouse genetics in understanding how the products of multiple genes interact to develop and maintain entire physiological systems. I would strongly urge the Department to investigate research that would permit the long-term storage of blood cells and tissues in deployed environments.”