THE sad news that actor Michael J. Fox has Parkinson鈥檚 disease at the age of
37 will give thirtysomethings everywhere pause for thought. Other celebrities
have succumbed, but Fox鈥檚 youthfulness shatters the common view that this is a
disease of the elderly.
For Fox, the disease may become a double burden. In the wake of Christopher
Reeve鈥檚 vigorous fund-raising and campaigning on behalf of patients with spinal
cord injuries, Parkinson鈥檚 sufferers and carers may expect the same from Fox for
their cause. But if he prefers privacy, the world should back off.
Nevertheless, there is one important issue about which Fox might usefully
whisper a few words in Bill Clinton鈥檚 ear. One of the brightest hopes for
treating Parkinson鈥檚 in future is likely to come from cell transplants from
embryonic stem cells. Because the US government has a moratorium on funding
research involving human embryos, only private companies pursue such
projects.
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This is a daft situation that has become even dafter since last month鈥檚
breakthrough in culturing human embryonic stem cells. Public research should be
setting the agenda.
