Myths about embryonic stem cell researchMyth: "Human life begins in the uterus, not in the Petri dish"Reality: In reality, it usually begins in the fallopian tubes, but it can also start in a Petri dish. The testimony of modern science is clear on this point: "The moment the sperm of the human male meets the egg of the female and the union results in a fertilized egg (zygote), a new life has begun." Considine, Douglas ( edited by). Van Nostrand's scientific encyclopedia. 5th edition. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, 1976, p. 943. See Moore, Keith L. Essentials of Human Embryology. Toronto: BC Decker Inc, 1988, p.2; Dox, Ida G. et al. The Harper Collins Illustrated Medical Dictionary. New York: Harper Perennial, 1993, p. 146; Sadler, TW Langman Medical Embryology. 7th edition. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins 1995, p. 3; Carlson, Fundamentals of Embryology by Bruce M. Patten. 6th edition. New York: McGraw_Hill, 1996, p. 3. The question is not whether human life is present, but how society should treat it. President Clinton's bioethics advisors also stated, "We believe most would agree that human embryos deserve respect as a human life form..." - National Bioethics Advisory Commission on Stem Cell Research, September 1999 (emphasis added) “Stem cell research” refers to research using stem cells that come from embryos or other sources, such as adult tissue, placenta, or umbilical cord blood. The only way to obtain embryonic stem cells, however, is to kill the living human embryo. Embryos killed for their stem cells are about a week old and have grown to about 200 cells. Embryonic stem cells have not helped a single human patient, while adult stem cells and similar ethically acceptable alternatives have helped hundreds of thousands. Myth: "Excess embryos will still be discarded" Reality: Not necessarily. Today parents can keep "excess" embryos for future pregnancies and donate them to other couples. Under proposed guidelines from the NIH, parents will be asked to consider destroying them for federally funded research. In a recent study, 59% of parents who initially planned to discard their embryos after three years later changed their minds, choosing another pregnancy or donation. to infertile couples. New England Journal of Medicine, July 5, 2001. According to NIH guidelines, these embryos may have already been destroyed.