No evidence of a cure for serious illness

IT IS most disturbing to hear Tánaiste Minister Mary Harney’s justification for embryo research... that as many of the embryos may die they might as well be experimented on.

This argument could just as easily apply to people with terminal illnesses and those with disabilities who may have a shorter life expectancy.

Her suggestion that embryonic stem cells may provide cures for certain diseases or illnesses has little or no foundation. In many cases research on embryonic stem cells is being abandoned in favour of research on the more successful adult stem cells.

Since the passing of the UK Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, which permitted experimentation on human embryos in Britain, there have been no cures or benefits for people with disabilities or diseases. This despite using between 300,000 and 500,000 embryos for experimentation.

The Tánaiste should admit this, rather than cynically seeking to play on the hopes and fears of those with illnesses and disabilities.

Mairtín Ó Maolruaidh,

Polkeen,

Tuam Road,

Galway.