Collins: NIH Not the National Institutes of Basic Sciences

Embryonic stem cell research has yet to treat any human patient for anything.  The problems with tumor formation and possible rejection make embryonic stem cell treatments a long shot for treating patients.  Some scientists believe it maybe "difficult to impossible" to ensure that embryonic stem cell cultures in the lab are free of abnormal cells.  Meanwhile, adult stem cells are decades ahead in research and are already treating patients for a list of conditions as long as my arm.

Many argue that embryonic stem cell research is important because it is something called basic science.  Basic science is science that is simply for investigational purposes.  As opposed to practical science that has a practical purpose in mind like treating patient for a specific condition.  Some ESC supporters argue that we need to federally fund embryonic stem cell research even if they never are used to treat patients because the basic science is important.  They hold that the information we can learn justifies the destruction of human life.

In the United States, taxpayer funding for embryonic stem cell research comes from the National Institutes of Health, better known as the NIH.  The head of the NIH is Francis Collins who is as famous for his scientific accomplishments as his outspoken Evangelical faith.  In this piece in the New York Times, Collins urges scientists to consider clinical applications for their research.  Collins said:

While acknowledging the importance of basic sciences like biochemistry and genetics, he said he wanted scientists to consider clinical or therapeutic implications in their work. “We’re not the National Institutes of Basic Sciences,” he said. “We’re the National Institutes of Health.”

So if the NIH is NOT the National Institutes of Basic Sciences, then why is it funding embryonic stem cell research?

Hat Tip: Daniel MacArthur and Attila Csordas