Kay Bailey Hutchison: “I appreciate very much what Senator Frist, who is the only physician in the Senate, is contributing to the issue of stem…”

“I appreciate very much what Senator Frist, who is the only physician in the Senate, is contributing to the issue of stem cell use for research purposes. We have just spent several hours in a hearing learning from scientists and many others about the differing viewpoints on the need for the use of stem cells for research into many diseases where it is hoped we can find an answer through the use of these embryonic stem cells. The debate is valid. Senator Frist has pointed out some of the legitimate ethical questions. I hope we can move forward in a way that does increase the ability to use these types of stem cells and cord blood for looking into the causes and, more importantly, even the treatment of some of the cancers and diseases, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, multiple myeloma, many forms of cancer where there is great hope that we might have treatment that would allow people to live healthy lives, normal lives, with this kind of treatment, even though they have these diseases. I thank the Senator from Tennessee for his thoughtful contribution to this debate.”