July 20, 2006 (Levittown, Pennsylvania)

MIKE FITZPATRICK AND FACTS DON'T MIX
Congressman Fitzpatrick ignores expert testimony, ignores needs of Pennsylvania families

Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick yet again sided with the President yesterday in denying millions of Americans hope that they can be
cured of debilitating diseases. According to today's issue of the Bucks County Courier Times, “Fitzpatrick voted against the original bill in 2005, in an effort to prevent funding for what he calls 'unproven technology.'” Congressman Fitzpatrick was so quick to defend the President's failed agenda, he forget to check the facts.

“Experts from across the county have shown that embryonic stem cell research far exceeds the capabilities of umbilical cord stem cells, or that of adult stem cells," Patrick Murphy, Democratic Nominee for Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District said. "This is yet another example of Mike Fitzpatrick choosing to rubberstamp President Bush's agenda over saving the lives of members of our community.”

SEE FOR YOURSELF, THE EXPERTS HAVE SAID IT:

Nobel Laureates' Letter to President Bush; Washington Post, February 21, 2001:

“Some have suggested that adult stem cells may be sufficient to pursue all treatments for human disease. It is premature to conclude that adult stem cells have the same potential as embryonic stem cells -- and that potential will almost certainly vary from disease to disease. Current evidence suggests that adult stem cells have markedly restricted differentiation potential. Therefore, for disorders that prove not to be treatable with adult stem cells, impeding human pluripotent stem cell research risks unnecessary delay for millions of patients who may die or endure needless suffering while the effectiveness of adult stem cells is evaluated.”

Representative Joe Schwarz, R-MI, Congressional Record, July 19, 2006:

“As a physician, I am dismayed at the claims that adult stem cells and umbilical cord cells hold the true pluripotentiality of embryonic stem cells. This is simply not true.”

Dr. Irving Weissman, M.D. Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, testimony before Senate Commerce Committee, July 14, 2004:

“In my view it is irresponsible to fail to pursue all such avenues in parallel to stop or ameliorate the tragedies our families endure because of these diseases. And of course, in my view it is worse than irresponsible to ban these pursuits.”

Dr. Robert A. Goldstein, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International, testimony before Senate Commerce Committee, July 14, 2004:

“We do know that to date, adult stem cells have not been shown to hold as much promise for juvenile diabetes as embryonic stem cells. Given this reality, how can we turn our backs on other exciting research opportunities, such as embryonic stem cell research, thereby potentially delaying life-saving therapies and cures for millions of people? And how can we adequately compare the effectiveness of adult and embryonic stem cell research unless both avenues are pursued simultaneously and with equal rigor?”

Dr. George Daley, Associate Professor of Pediatrics & Biological Chemistry & Molecular Pharmacology, Children's Hospital / Harvard School of Medicine, testimony before Senate Commerce Committee, September 29 2004:

“Although research on adult stem cells is enormously promising and has already yielded clinical success in the form of bone marrow transplantation, adult stem cells are not the biological equivalents of embryonic stem cells, and adult stem cells will not satisfy all scientific and medical needs. Moreover, a great many questions about adult stem cells remain unanswered...Claiming that the study of adult stem cells should trump the study of embryonic stem cells is an opinion at the fringe and not the forefront of scientific thinking.”

“Adult Stem Cell Treatments for Diseases?” Letter to Science Magazine, July 13, 2006. Shane Smith, Children's Neurobiological Solutions Foundation; William Neaves, Stowers Institute for Medical Research; Steven Teitelbaum, Department of Pathology and Immunology:

“By promoting the falsehood that adult stem cell treatments are already in general use for 65 diseases and injuries, Prentice and those who repeat his claims mislead laypeople and cruelly deceive patients.”

 

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