Couples seeking infertility treatment overwhelmingly support embryonic stem cell research. The data comes from a new survey of patients at a Chicago fertility center.
Nearly three in four infertility patients said they think unused embryos should be available for stem cell research. And it matters what those people think, says Doctor Tarun Jain.
JAIN: These embryos belong solely to the infertility couples who created them. They are in charge of what happens to these embryos.
Jain directs in-vitro fertilization at the University of Illinois Fertility Center. His survey shows infertility patients are more likely to back stem cell research than the general population is.
JAIN: If they have these extra embryos, in general they would prefer to help other couples rather than discard these embryos.
Jain found that support for stem cell research increases with age, income and education levels. Catholic respondents show the same level of support as the whole survey population.
I’m Gabriel Spitzer, Chicago Public Radio.