Cancer. Alzheimer’s. Heart disease. Birth defects. These diseases and conditions run rampant through generations of genes and DNA. They kill loved ones and family members. There is an answer to all of these problems and more - stem cells. Stem cell research is and will continue to be beneficial to furthering treatments and discovering cures for usually fatal and chronic diseases or conditions.

Stem Cells are unspecialized cells meaning they don’t have a specific tissue they have to generate. According to the National Institutes of Health and their stem cell research, stem cells can grow or be induced to be any type of tissue or organ-specific tissue including nervous, cardiac, muscular, and many other kinds as needed. They also have the ability to renew themselves and continue growing after long dormant periods of life. They can replace old and damaged tissue under special circumstances and give life to areas thought dead. There are two main types of Stem Cells: embryonic stem cells and non-embryonic "somatic" or "adult" stem cells. Adult cells are used but embryonic cells have been used more successfully and tend to adapt more accurately. Procedures such as “vitro” fertilizations were created through 30 years of research of embryonic stem cells. These special cells have the ability to advance cell-based therapies and regenerative medicine. This research has also allowed scientists to find causes for birth defects and abnormal growth. This research is rapidly growing and gaining new information every day because of how fast they show results.

There are many Pros and Cons to stem cell research as there are with every great scientific discovery and debate. The most effective stem cells are embryonic cells. These are found in embryos and fetus. A common misconception is that all embryonic stem cells come from aborted fetus and this is not true.  The blood contained in the placenta is also used. In my opinion, the pros outweigh the cons. Stem cells are only a few more trials and years away from being able to solve health problems that have puzzled doctors for centuries. The ethical issues seem minute compared to the cure of cancer. 

As you can see, I support the use of embryonic and adult stem cells if it means doctors will continue to break through scientific barriers and save loved ones. People will always have problems with every great thing that comes around because people are scared of change. Science can be a mysterious and an unknown world, anything new can come across as potentially dangerous. Stem cells, on the other hand, should be given a chance to show what they can accomplish.