1.

Stem cell treatments are risk-free if they come from your own body (False, New stem cell treatments
have to be tested for safety and effectiveness – even if they’re your own stem cells. Here are some of
the FDA’s concerns: Will stem cells migrate to other parts of the body, will they make inappropriate cell
types, and do they carry any tumour risk? Researchers are studying all of that.

2. There are no proven stem cell treatments-yet (False, for decades, doctors have used stem cells taken
from bone marrow to help treat some cancers (such as leukemia), blood diseases (such as sickle cell
anemia), and immune system diseases. Sometimes those stem cells come from the patients themselves.
Other times they come from donated bone marrow. Either way, those are widely accepted stem cell
treatments.

3. Stem cells cure ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease ). (False, Researchers are working on this. But that work is
still in the early stages. That also goes for type 1 diabetes, stroke, and other conditions – stem cell
treatments are being studied, but those studies are still mostly focused on making sure the treatments
are safe. Proving that they work comes after that.

4. What’s so special about stem cells, anyway? They can make other types of cells. Stem cells are all
about about potential – they could make new cells to replace damaged ones, for instance. Some stem
cells can make more types of cells than others, but what they all have in common is that they can do
more than make copies of themselves. That means they have possibilities that most cells in the body
lack.

5. Adult stem cells are found only in bone marrow. (False, there are stem cells throughout your body.
They’re not that easy to find, though. Even in bone marrow, a relatively rich source of stem cells, only
about 1 in 10.000 cells – fewer – is thought to be a stem cell. So yes, they’re around. But think, needle in
haystack.

6. Stem cells might cure the common cold. (False, stem cells aren’t being tapped to cure the common
cold. Colds are about viruses that invade your body – and stem cells don’t tackle viruses. Even if stem
cells could snuff out the common cold, that wouldn’t be a reasonable approach, since colds don’t last
long and aren’t life-threatening.

7. Scientist can reprogram skill cells to act like stem cells. (True, scientist can reprogram ordinary cells,
such as skin cells, to act like stem cells. Those cells, called induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSCs), are
being studied to check their safety.

8. “Adult” stem cells are only found in grown-ups. (False, adult stem cells are actually found in infants
and children, as well as adults. The three main types of stem cells are stem cells, embryonic stem cells,
and induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSCs), which are ordinary cells (such as skill cells) that scientists
have tweaked to act like embryonic stem cells.

9. Any embryonic stem cell can be used for research in the U.S. (False, In the U.S., human embryonic
stem cells can only to be used for research if they :
- Came from embryos developed developed throught IVF (in vitro fertilization) procedures done for
reproductive purposes,
- Are no longer needed by the people who got those IVF procedures,
- Were donated with those people’s consent,
- And were not paid for in any way.
10. New parents should ba nk their baby’s umbilical cord blood, just in case the child needs stem cells
later on. (False. It’s an option, but it’s up to each family. When a baby is born, the umbilical cord and
placenta are routinely discarded, unless the parents chose to have blood from the umbilical cord or
placenta collected.)