Vatican, US firm to host congress to promote adult stem-cell therapy

(June 16, 2011) The Vatican and a US firm are jointly hosting an international congress to promote the use of adult stem cells as a safe, effective and ethical means to fight degenerative diseases. The congress, scheduled Nov. 9-11, will also feature speakers who support embryonic stem-cell research, to give proponents an opportunity to "explain the reasoning behind their position," said Father Tomasz Trafny, an official with the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Culture. The Catholic Church is opposed to the use of embryonic stem cells since it involves the destruction of the human embryo which is human life. The congress, organized by the Vatican's councils for Culture and Health Pastoral Care as well as the Pontifical Academy for Life, is being held in conjunction with the international biopharmaceutical company, NeoStem. The congress will be the first major collaborative project between the Pontifical Council for Culture and the biotech firm since they forged an agreement in 2010 to work together to educate people about the benefits of adult stem-cell research. The collaboration is between NeoStem's Stem for Life Foundation and the culture council's foundation - called STOQ International, for Science, Theology and the Ontological Quest. The November congress entitled, "Adult Stem Cells: Science and the Future of Man and Culture," will feature expert speakers from the fields of medicine, health and ethics.