Columbia University released a presser nearly 10 weeks ago about a "Novel Clinical Trial" involving those damn adult stem cells; you know, the kind we're supposed to pretend are useless as compared to their embryonic predecessors.

The novelty of course comes from the fact that medical researchers are yet again showing promise using non-embryonic forms of adult stem cells. But this trial goes beyond that simple fact; it has the added novelty of using a person's own adult stem cells to treat a form of coronary artery disease that is so severe that traditional treatment is not an option.

The results are very preliminary but even if the trial was in the final phase I wouldn't expect to hear about it in the mainstream media anytime soon. That's because this study breaches all the taboo's of liberal activism by the novelty of its sheer existence. Combine that with the fact that the trial is being funded by a (gasp) major "money grubbing" pharmaceutical researcher and you have all the elements necessary to justify below the fold, section c, inside the back page, small left hand corner, 2-3 lines max treatment (with a little luck).

You can read about the specifics of the trial here. The following is a quick synopsis.

Columbia University Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital is one of the first medical centers in the country participating in a novel clinical trial investigating if a patient's own stem cells can treat a form of severe coronary artery disease.

[snip]

"This promising stem cell therapy may be an alternative for patients without any other means to treat their chest pain," says Warren Sherman, site principal investigator, interventional cardiologist at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia and associate professor of medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

[snip]

The stem cells are thought to work by promoting the growth of new vessels to create pathways to the heart muscle, ensuring adequate nutrition and alleviating the pain associated with the myocardial ischemia.

Researchers are encouraged by reports from the Phase I trial that the therapy appeared to be well-tolerated and no serious adverse events directly related to the stem cell therapy were reported. Through the duration of the 12-month study, there were no deaths or heart attacks. Fifteen of the 18 total Phase I subjects who received the cells reported feeling better with reductions in chest pain and/or improved exercise capacity. Though not sufficiently powered to prove efficacy, these results did lead the way to the initiation of the Phase II ACT34-CMI trial.

The study is sponsored by Cellular Therapies, a business unit of Baxter Healthcare Corp. [all emphasis mine]

This is one of many studies that demonstrates the promise of non-embryonic stem cell research. You would think that we would begin to hear about these kinds of breakthroughs especially now that the 2006 elections are over. Instead the politics of liberal activists in the mainstream media has permeated the industry so deeply that they can't even report on causes they would otherwise champion. The fact of the matter is that this type of news would shed truth on the lie of embryonic stem cell politics and that is something the gate keepers will not tolerate no matter how many lives could be positively affected.

The optimist in me thinks we could make a difference if we started calling embryonic stem cell research by a more appropriate name such as fertilized human baby egg stem cell research. The realist in me knows this would make little difference because the optimist assumes that liberal activists have shame; something the realist in me knows not to be true.

Note: This article has been updated to reflect the fact that the original press release came out nearly 10 weeks ago! This continues the trend of the MSM embargo on such news; a pure travesty of substandard journalism in my estimation.

Update II: Dave From Texas has noted that ABC news covered a related story on adult stem cell therapy on March 26th, 2007. Better yet, ABC World News covered the story in a segment on their 6:30 newscast.

Kudos goes to ABC for covering this story although I must point out that the original study they are reporting on started over two years ago! This particular ABC story was actually covered on 11/19/06 by the Jackie Hillman of the Ganette Tenessee.

This is more evidence that the left has not only been under reporting this information but I would venture that they have actually gone out of their way to ignore such news as demonstrated by the overwhelming media emphasis in their silence during the whole Michael J. Fox incident. I can't imagine that the editors and producers in the MSM were not inundated by angry opponents of embryonic stem cell research in an effort to set the record straight.

You will also note that ABC news is promoting the notion that adult stem cell research carries same risk of cancer like tumor growth as reported in embryonic trials. I had not heard this reported previously; in fact I had heard the opposite so I plan to research the issue to verify for a followup article. I did read the CardioStem presentation and note that they make no mention of the tumor risks. In fact they are touting this procedure as very safe.

Terry Trippany is the editor at Webloggin. Previous: More Embryonic Stem Cell Science from the "They Don’t Get It" Files