Will stem cells be able to help treat Parkinson’s disease in the future? What is Parkinson’s disease? Parkinson’s is a neurodegenerative disease where there is a progressive degeneration and death of neurons in the human brain. Although the disease can occur to people in their teenage years, it is much more common in people aged 50 years and above.(Professor Schapira 2011) It is unsure of what exactly causes Parkinson’s, however most experts agree that it is caused by both genetic and environmental factors. Like other neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s, Parkinson’s disease is incurable. The disease primarily affects the dopamine-producing(dopaminergic) neurons in a specific area of the brain called the substantia …show more content…
The study done on the monkeys showed positive results and if stem cell treatment actually becomes successful, it will be able to benefit a great number of people whose lives and families have been badly affected by Parkinson’s and other severe diseases. In my opinion, although it is cruel to be testing on animals, it is necessary in order to further research and it is the standard procedure before human trials in order to make sure the treatment is effective and there are no harmful side effects such as development of tumours or cancers as it is often the case with stem cell transplants. I think when it comes to stem cell research, to come to a conclusion on which side a person stands, one must really put themselves in another person’s shoes and look at the situation in the light of, for example, someone with Parkinson’s or a relative of someone with Parkinson’s and I feel that a person initially opposing stem cell research could possible change their minds if their circumstances changed and stem cell treatment was able to help them. Therefore, I think that no one could be completely against stem cell research, proving that it is necessary and stem cell research should continue to be