Embryo Stem-Cells Improve Sight in Severe Vision Loss Patients

(p. A7) Researchers have used stem cells from human embryos to treat patients suffering from severe vision loss, the first time the technique has been shown to be both safe and potentially effective in a sustained way.
. . .
. . . , Dr. Lanza and his colleagues first obtained an eight-cell embryo from a fertility clinic. (The embryo was left over from fertility treatments and was destined for destruction.)
. . .
Vision tests suggested that 10 of the 18 treated eyes had improved sight, with eight patients reading more than 15 additional letters on a reading chart in the first year after transplant. Visual acuity remained the same or improved in seven patients, though it decreased by more than ten letters in one patient.

For the full story, see:
GAUTAM NAIK. “Vision Improves in Stem-Cell Trial.” The Wall Street Journal (Weds., OCT. 15, 2014): A7.
(Note: ellipses added.)
(Note: the online version of the story has the date OCT. 14, 2014, and has the title “Stem Cells Show Potential Benefits for Eye Diseases.”)

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