Stem Cell Research

Ignoring Patients of Today in Search of Cures for Tomorrow

American medicine has a recent history of making good on its promises. Consider the eradication of polio, measles, and small pox. Consider the cures for many forms of cancer; the decreasing invasiveness, and therefore risks, of life enhancing surgical procedures such as joint replacements and corrective cardiac surgery. Consider the ability to live longer and more fully even when infected with the virus that causes HIV/AIDS. And while I applaud this progress, I do not accept that every promise will be kept.

One of the most recent promises American medicine has made, in particular the medical research community, is that of potential cures found through stem cell research, specifically, embryonic stem cell research. An article in The Journal of Clinical Investigation recently promised this: “Because they may be able to replace cells that have atrophied or have been lost entirely, stem cells offer the hope of restoration of cellular function and relief from suffering associated with many disabling disorders.” That is compelling when you consider that among the “disabling disorders” for which this research purports to offer hope are Lou Gehrig’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, spinal cord injury, diabetes and stroke.

In light of this “promise,” researchers and many others are seeking billions of dollars from government as well as public and private entrepreneurs. In California, voters approved a $3 billion ballot initiative for embryonic stem cell studies. Proponents seem to argue that because the promise—the possibility—of future benefit is so great, society has a moral obligation to make this research possible now. This argument is made even in light of cautions such as this from Neurology: “While the potential of embryonic stem cell research to result in breakthrough therapies is real, it is important to recognize that the translation of research into therapy will take many years, and it is also possible that such therapies may not ever be realized.”

It is well known that embryonic stem cell research raises any number of ethical issues from the creation and destruction of human life to the coercive potential of offering money to women who agree to donate their ova for such research. These issues are hotly debated at all points on the political and religious spectrum.

But there is an associated ethical issue that is not being discussed with any seriousness. The United States spends more money on health care than any other nation. Insured Americans have access to the latest high-tech and innovative medical procedures in the world, as well as to what some would think of as frivolous interventions. And most certainly, it will be insured Americans who will have access to the hoped for outcomes of stem cell research, if and when they materialize. But there are 45 to 50 million uninsured or under-insured Americans today who have no guarantee they will have access to even basic health care services. The consequences of this lack of access are as devastating now for them as the “disabling disorders” that stem cell research, it if succeeds, could be for the yet-to-be-identified persons in a still vague future.

We have data today from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies demonstrating that people without health insurance often go without care or delay needed care. We know that uninsured hospitalized patients receive fewer needed services and worse quality of care. We know that uninsured patients are at greater risk of dying in the hospital or shortly after discharge than insured patients. We know that uninsured adults with HIV wait an average of four months longer than insured patients to receive new, highly effective drugs. And we know that uninsured children are more likely not to have a usual source of health care, go without needed care, and therefore experience worse health outcomes as a result.

We need not wait until some future time to address the “disabling disorders” that these fellow Americans struggle with today. And yet, we consistently put off any serious efforts at health care reform while committing vast resources of this nation to the pursuit of a promise that may yield no benefits for either current or future persons.

Why?

Sr. Jean deBlois, CSJ
Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology
Director of Master of Arts in Health Care Mission Program

Originally published in the Fall 2006 issue of Signatures, published by the Aquinas Institute of Theology.