Watson Coleman: “In that letter Dr. Grompe talks about what my colleague from Oklahoma just talked about. He talks about producing cells…”

“In that letter Dr. Grompe talks about what my colleague from Oklahoma just talked about. He talks about producing cells that are immunologically matched to the patient from whom they were derived. He says: These cells could then be used for transplantation without being rejected by the immune system. It is also expected that these approaches will make the production of pluripotent cell lines technically easier and more efficient than methods that rely on embryos. Then he goes on to say: In my own laboratory we would use the alternative methods to produce liver and pancreas cells for the treatment of liver diseases and diabetes. We have an opportunity under S. 30 to move the research forward, to move it forward in a unified way, a way that avoids the culture wars, avoids the great divide, that has the opportunity for moving forward without dealing with the issues of immune reactions that opens up a vision of hope. This is about hope. S. 30 is hope offered through principled and ethical stem cell research--the HOPE Act. I hope my colleagues on both sides of the aisle--whatever their position is on S. 5--understand if they want to move the ball forward, if they want to look into the eyes of their constituents and say we are going to give you something, some sense of hope, we are going to move research forward, the only way to do that today is through supporting S. 30. I urge my colleagues to support S. 30.”