Despite the religious and moral controversy it unleashes, it is undeniable that the news is a milestone in the history of medicine. The first treatment with embryonic stem cells is being carried out in the United States.
They have already begun to treat the first patient in the world who undergoes this technique, who is only known to be a patient with a very recent serious spinal injury. The first phase of the trial is not to cure it, but to first analyze whether the use of these embryonic stem cells is safe and if the patient tolerates them without problem.
The cells that are injected into the patient come from human embryos left over from fertility treatments. And this is where the controversy lies. Critical voices oppose its use.
In simple terms, the technique involves introducing the cells through a single injection at the site of spinal cord damage. Cells travel to the key point of spinal cord injury and produce myelin helping damaged nerves to regenerate.
We will know if in this or other patients (there will be at least six more), the treatment has been effective.
Scientists hope that it will be so. They also expect that in the future embryonic stem cells (those extracted from embryos of a few days of life are the most powerful) they can cure diseases such as diabetes or Parkinson's.
Ten years ago, all this sounded like science fiction and it may be that many of them continue to sound. But today, beyond the ethical debate that arises, we are witnessing a great step in embryonic stem cell research.
