Adult Stem Cells and Life Sciences

Debate between Nick Thomas-Symonds and David Burrowes

Tuesday 15th September 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Burrowes]

A fine example of a forward step is the progress made by Professor Geoffrey Raisman, director of the spinal repair unit at University College London institute of neurology, whose work could ultimately lead to the repair of spinal cord injuries in humans.

[Nick Thomas-Symonds (Torfaen) (Lab)]

Does the hon. Gentleman agree that the collecting of data at transplantation centres is very important and so is the sharing of it if we are to make progress? There should be greater emphasis on that, and it should be properly resourced.

[Mr Burrowes]

Absolutely, and I will come on to that. The quality of the data that can be shared is important, and the key ask of the Government is to support the call for a national stem cell transplantation network, which will help in that.

However, Professor Raisman’s pioneering work remains underfunded. He hit the headlines in 2014 when Polish surgeons, in collaboration with scientists in London, enabled Darek Fidyka, a man paralysed from the chest down in a knife attack, to walk again using a frame. Professor Raisman said that the achievement was

“more impressive than man walking on the moon.”

Sir Richard Sykes, chair of the UK Stem Cell Foundation, said:

“To fully develop future treatments that benefit the 3 million paralysed globally will need continued investment for wide scale clinical trials.”

We are trying to get to precisely that clinical basis.