By Ruth Carter


The dizzying pace at which progress is made in the medical field is truly astonishing. New treatment options, procedures, medicines and tools are becoming available all the time. Many diseases that used to mean almost certain death have now been conquered. Research continues at an unabated pace and there is no reason to doubt that many more diseases will be brought under control very soon. For example, stem cell therapy centers promise medical breakthroughs such as the world has never seen.

Bone marrow transplants is not new technology at all but there are many new studies into the potential of this treatment method. In the past, transplants were restricted to patients suffering from leukaemia and other diseases related to the blood. These patients receive chemotherapy that destroy both healthy and diseases cells. Marrow transplants help to promote the growth of healthy new cells.

While patients suffering from certain types of cancer have most certainly benefited from bone marrow transplants, researchers firmly believe that these transplants will soon become a miracle treatment method for may other types of disease. Unfortunately, progress is slow because it is a very difficult field of research and their are numerous obstacle that need to be overcome before human patients can be treated.

One exciting application of bone marrow transplants is to treat patients with conditions that cause the brain to degenerate. In this way conditions such as Alzheimer and Parkinson will become a thing of the past. There are also exciting possibilities in the treatment of patients with severe spinal injuries and physical brain damage. Scientists foresee that the treatment will eventually even reverse the terrible effects of a stroke.

There is also much excitement about the possibilities for treating some heart diseases with bone marrow transplants. Heart disease is currently one of the biggest health problems in the world. Researchers believe that it will be possible to replace damaged cells and blood vessels inside the heart with new cells and blood vessels. Unfortunately, research into this application of bone marrow transplants is still in its infant shoes.

Not everyone is excited about the potential benefits of bone marrow transplants. There are those that say that this treatment method is almost certain to lead to highly unethical medical practices. This is because it is common practice to use blood from the umbilical cords of babies not yet born in the place of actual bone marrow during transplants. Critics say this may lead to a situation where women will become pregnant solely to become donors.

Critics also complain that there is too much hype about the future potential of bone marrow transplants. They say that positive results are still years away and that researchers are falsely creating the impression that major breakthroughs will be made in the near future. They also say that places that already offer this treatment do it for no reason other than money, knowing that the treatment is extremely risky.

Promises of new revolutionary medical treatments are always exciting. Whether bone marrow transplants will become a miracle cure, as researchers hope it will, no one knows for sure. One thing is certain, if even a fraction of the hopes and expectations of researchers becomes reality, millions of lives will be saved.




About the Author:



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I am passionate about educating university students about money and careers, and have been doing so since 2007. I see the same confusion and mistakes being replicated every year. The way I help is through Save the Student. I'm always on the look out for new contributors, so get in touch if you're wanting to get involved! Aside from the site, my main interests are travelling, writing, photography, webdesign, sailing, football and cycling.

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