CIRM Director Prieto Says hESC Research Ruling 'Almost Beyond Belief'

CIRM Director Francisco Prieto, a Sacramento physician, sent in the following comment on our item on today's ruling temporarily halting federal funding of hESC research.

"I think you're opening hits the nail on the head: this decision 'makes clear the importance of alternative funding sources such as the California stem cell agency.' It is almost beyond belief that the court could find that the plaintiffs really met the high standards for a preliminary injunction to call an immediate halt to Federal runding, i.e. that 'there is a substantial likelihood of success on the merits; (2) that the plaintiff would suffer irreparable injury absent an injunction; (3) that an injunction would not substantially injure other interested parties.' I believe none of these are true. Certainly researchers using adult stem cells have had unfettered access to compete for NIH funding since the Bush decision in 2001, and continue to be able to compete for funding. It seems almost obvious that this decision if upheld would injure substantially other interested parties - all the millions of people with chronic disease who hope that this research may lead someday to a cure."