For mercy’s sake

Sydney
25 August 2002

Stem cells: Cancer risk warning

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Stem cells: cancer risk warning

By Chris Lindsay

Embryonic stem cells can cause cancer and will be rejected by the body’s immune system, says Dr Amin Abboud, an authority on medical ethics and health law.

These are problems that could make embryonic stem cells dangerous in the treatment of diseases.

Such issues are likely to be raised during the Federal Parliament debate on legislation that would allow research on embryonic stem cells left over from IVF treatments.

Dr Abboud, director of the Australasian Bioethics Information centre, says embryonic stem cells can cause cancer.

In a report on the stem-cell research debate, Dr Abboud says that while embryonic stem cells are versatile they can also become malignant.

He quotes the editor of the research journal Stem Cells making a “startling admission” last year: “I continue to think that clinical application is a long way off. “Prior to clinical use of embryonic and foetal stem cells, it will be necessary to thoroughly investigate the malignant potential of embryonic stem cells.” Adult stem cells seem to be more stable than embryonic stem cells, Dr Abboud says, and are not as prone to forming tumours.

And the use of adult stem cells seems to overcome the problem of immune rejection, which will be a big problem with the use of embryonic stem cells.

“Our bodies quickly recognise and try to kill off foreign tissues implanted in them,” he says.

“By using cells from oneself (adult stem cells), the compatibility problem is avoided. There is something holistic and natural about using adult stem cells. “In some experiments in which embryonic stem cells were used as therapies, the patients actually got worse.” The Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the National Party, John Anderson, joined the debate over the dangers of embryonic stem cell use at a seminar in Sydney earlier this month which was attended by the Archbishop of Sydney, Dr George Pell.

“The issue of cloning isn’t going to go away,” Mr Anderson said. “The problems of rejection will lead to calls for cloning – therapeutic cloning. It’s not different to reproductive cloning, it’s just they kill you off a bit earlier.” (Therapeutic cloning is the cloning of a person’s own adult stem cells to be used in research or treatment.) Mr Anderson says problems such as rejection by the body could lead to “calls for the development of such massive tissue banks … we will end up farming human eggs”.

Professor Michael Good, director of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research, said at the seminar: “Women would have to be super ovulated to produce the very large number of eggs that would be required to generate those embryos.” Dr Warwick Neville, a research fellow with the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference, says that despite these well known problems with embryonic stem cell research, they are never mentioned by advocates of such research, who “do not like to refer to downsides,” he said.