By Don C. Reed

How many Nobel Prize winners, scientists and doctors have already put their good names in support of Proposition 14, the California Stem Cell Research, Treatments and Cures Initiative of 2020? In a minute, I will show you.

You probably already know about the great work done by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM): about the fifty little children whose lives were saved from the otherwise fatal “bubble baby” disease; the paralyzed people who regained a measure of upper body motion and control; the blind who recovered measurable vision, including a woman who now can see her children — for the first time.

But today CIRM’s funding is almost gone, after 16 years of advancing science to ease or alleviate suffering.

So: should California authorize a $5.5 billion dollar renewal of our stem cell program?

Patient advocate Bob Klein and friends have put a request for renewal on the 2020 ballot. If voters approve, Proposition 14: the California Stem Cell Research, Treatments and Cures Initiative of 2020 will make five and a half billion dollars available for research funding.

If you like that idea, lend us your energy.

Put aside some of your many chores and help us gain reliable funding for medical research: primarily stem cell and gene therapy, but with the ability to utilize new forms of science as they develop.

Need a couple reasons to fight for CIRM’s continued existence? Here are ten:

1. CIRM is challenging chronic disease and disability, which cost America an estimated $3 trillion dollars* last year. CIRM works to lessen that mountain of medical debt — by fighting to cure disease, not just maintain folks in their expensive misery.

2. CIRM’s targets include: blindness, various kinds of cancer, ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), kidney failure, diabetes, sickle-cell disease, schizophrenia, HIV-AIDS, and dozens more conditions, called chronic: long-lasting or incurable.

3. CIRM has been the largest dedicated source of stem cell and genetic research in the world. Long-term funding allows scientists time to complete their projects, working systematically, sometimes reaching all the way to clinical trials.

4. CIRM has already begun to win: in addition to 50 children cured of the usually-fatal “bubble baby” disease, similar procedures may help defeat sickle-cell anemia. Progress has been made in many conditions, including two FDA- approved methods of fighting often fatal forms of blood cancer.

5. CIRM’s Alpha clinics offer carefully prepared tests for new therapies: also, guidelines for patients to observe when considering a stem cell procedure.

6. CIRM has brought new jobs and additional revenue ($3.2 billion in add-on funds) to California, more than the original $3 billion investment.

7. CIRM cooperates with other states, nations, and institutions, with each side bringing its own funding, more bang for the research buck.

8. CIRM’s “Bridges” program provides on-the-job training (and a salary!) for college students. The Summer Program to Advance Research Knowledge (SPARK) offers professional experience for young people in high school,

9. Twelve new stem cell research facilities have been established: benefiting California from Humboldt in the North to San Diego in the South.

10. CIRM has established strict ethical guidelines for research, in some cases more stringent than the federal government’s.

*https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/about/costs/index.htm

Our choice: should the world’s largest stem cell program continue — or die?

For more information, go to YESON14.com.

Share this small article. Talk to a friend.

Write a letter to the editor. If you want a little help writing it, contact me at diverdonreed@gmail.com

If you are a scientist, or if (like me) you just strongly support research for cure, help us fight for you, so there will be funds available for grants. Five and a half billion dollars is substantive research funding, especially compared to — nothing — which is what we will have, if we lose.

$5.5 billion dollars’ worth of research — or nothing.

Vote YES! on Proposition 14: the California Stem Cell Research, Treatment and Cures Initiative of 2020!

Don C. Reed is the author of “REVOLUTIONARY THERAPIES: How the California Stem Cell Program Saved Lives, Eased Suffering, and Changed the Face of Medicine Forever”, from World Science Publications, Inc.,2020

And now, here are twelve pages of Nobel laureates, scientist, and doctors who have endorsed Proposition 14: a partial listing.

https://caforcures.com/coalition/

Nobel Prize Winners:

David Baltimore, Ph.D.

President Emeritus & Professor of Biology, Caltech

Nobel Prize winner, Physiology or Medicine (1975)

Harold E. Varmus, M.D.

Former Director, National Institutes of Health

Former Director, National Cancer Institute

Nobel Prize winner, Physiology or Medicine (1989)

John B. Gurdon, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus, University of Cambridge

Nobel Prize winner, Physiology or Medicine (2012)

Louis J. Ignarro, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus, UCLA School of Medicine

Nobel Prize winner, Physiology or Medicine (1998)

Mario R. Capecchi, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor of Human Genetics, University of Utah

Nobel Prize winner, Physiology or Medicine (2007)

Shinya Yamanaka, M.D., Ph.D.

Senior Investigator, Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease

Professor of Anatomy, UCSF

Nobel Prize winner, Physiology or Medicine (2012)

Individuals: Science & Medicine

Aaron Newman, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University

Aaron V. Kaplan, M.D.

Professor of Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth

Adriana Padilla, M.D.

Volunteer Clinical Professor, Family and Community Medicine, UCSF Fresno

Patient Advocate, Type II Diabetes

Adrienne Tuch, M.D.

Kaiser Permanente Department of Pediatrics

Agnieszka Czechowicz, M.D., Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine

Aileen Anderson, Ph.D.

Director, Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center, UC Irvine

Alan S. Wayne, M.D.

Director, Cancer & Blood Disease Institute, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC

Alison Butler, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor of Chemistry & Biochemistry, UC Santa Barbara

Member, American Academy of Arts & Sciences

Amir Matityahu, M.D.

Professor, Trauma & Problem Fractures, UCSF

Anamika Sharma, M.D.

San Jose Valley Medical Center

Andrew McMahon, Ph.D.

Director, Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research, USC

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Anne-Marie Duliege, M.D.

Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Stanford University

Board Member & Former Chairperson, Global Strategies for HIV Prevention

Anthony Atala, M.D.

Professor of Urology and Regenerative Medicine

Antoni Ribas, M.D., Ph.D.

President, American Association for Cancer Research

Professor of Medicine & Surgery, UCLA

Arnold Kriegstein, M.D., Ph.D.

Director, Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, UCSF

Arun Sharma, Ph.D.

Senior Research Fellow, Cedars-Sinai

Forbes 30 Under 30 in Science

Aubrey de Grey, Ph.D.

Chief Science Officer, SENS Research Foundation

Camilla Forsberg, Ph.D.

Professor, Biomolecular Engineering, UC Santa Cruz

Carin Zimmerman, Ph.D.

Director, Stem Cell Technology Program, City College of San Francisco

Catriona Jamieson, M.D., Ph.D.

Director, Sanford Stem Cell Clinical Center

Deputy Director, Moores Cancer Center, UCSD

Charles K.F. Chan, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, Stanford University

Charlene Smith, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Scholar, UC Irvine

Claire Pomeroy, M.D.

President & CEO, Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation

NIH Advisory Committee on Research on Women’s Health

Clive Svendsen, Ph.D.

Director, Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai

Dan Gincel, Ph.D.

VP University Partnership, TEDCO

Executive Director, Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund

Dan Gusfield, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, UC Davis

Dan Kaufman, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor of Medicine, UC San Diego

Daniel Kraft, M.D.

Chair, Medicine, Singularity University

David Brenner, M.D.

Vice Chancellor, Health Sciences, UC San Diego

Past President, Association of American Physicians

David Schaffer, Ph.D.

Director, Berkeley Stem Cell Center, UC Berkeley

David W. Martin, M.D.

Former Chief of Medical Genetics, UCSF

David Warburton, OBE, D.Sc., M.D.

Founding Director of Regenerative Medicine, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles

Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine of USC

Deborah Deas, M.D., M.P.H.

Vice Chancellor for Health Sciences & Dean, UC Riverside School of Medicine

Debra Matityahu, M.D.

OB-GYN, Kaiser Medical Center, Redwood City

Executive Director & Co-Founder, Beyond Fistula

Deepak Srivastava, M.D.

President, Gladstone Institutes

Professor of Pediatrics, UCSF

Denard M. Fobbs, Sr., M.D.

Past President, Golden State Medical Association

Director, Fobbs LifePoint Institute for Women

Dennis Clegg, Ph.D.

Professor, Wilcox Family Chair in BioMedicine, UC Santa Barbara

Diana Azurdia, Ph.D.

Director for Recruitment and Inclusion, Graduate Programs in Bioscience, UCLA

Donald B. Kohn, M.D.

Distinguished Professor, Broad Stem Cell Research Center, UCLA

Dory Escobar, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, University of San Francisco

Edward W. Holmes, M.D.

President & CEO, Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine

Vice Chancellor/Dean Emeritus of Health Sciences, UCSD

Edwin Monuki, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor & Chair of Pathology, UC Irvine School of Medicine

Evan Y. Snyder, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor & Founding Director, Center for Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute

Francine Kaufman, M.D.

Distinguished Professor Emerita of Pediatrics & Communications, USC

Past President, American Diabetes Association

Francisco J. Prieto, M.D.

Associate Clinical Professor, UC Davis

Patient Advocate, Type I Diabetes

Franklin D. Niver, D.M.D.

Periodontist, Encino

Fred “Rusty” Gage, Ph.D.

President, Salk Institute for Biological Studies

Professor, Neuroscience, UCSD

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Gary L. Gitnick, M.D.

Professor of Medicine & Chief of the Division of Digestive Diseases, UCLA School of Medicine

Gay Crooks, M.D., M.B.B.S.

Professor, Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, UCLA

George Blumenthal, Ph.D.

Chancellor, UC Santa Cruz

George Carlson, Ph.D.

Professor, Neuroscience, UCSF

Hans Clevers, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor of Molecular Genetics

Helen Blau, Ph.D.

Professor, Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford University

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Henry J. Klassen, M.D., Ph.D.

Director, Stem Cell & Retinal Regeneration Program, UC Irvine

Hsin-ya Yang, Ph.D.

Project Scientist, UC Davis

Irene Lorenzo Llorente, Ph.D.

Assistant Research Professor, UCLA

Irving Weissman, M.D.

Director, Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanford University

Jacob Punnamkuzhyil, Ph.D.

Professor, Humboldt State University

Jan Nolta, Ph.D.

Director, Stem Cell Program, UC Davis School of Medicine

Jeannine Rahimian, M.D.

Associate Clinical Professor, Obstetrics & Gynecology, UCLA

Jeff Steindorf, Ph.D.

Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine

Johannes Schöneberg, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Scholar, Molecular and Cell Biology Department, UC Berkeley

John A. Zaia, M.D.

Director, Center for Gene Therapy, City of Hope

Program Director, Alpha Stem Cell Clinic, City of Hope

John Reidling, Ph.D.

Project Scientist, Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders, UC Irvine

Jonathan Thomas, Ph.D., J.D.

Chairman of the Board, California Institute for Regenerative Medicine

Chair of the ICOC, Governing Board

Joseph C. Wu, M.D., Ph.D.

Director, Stanford Cardiovascular Institute

Joseph Panetta, M.P.H.

President & CEO, Biocom

Joseph R. Ecker, Ph.D.

Director, Genomic Analysis Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Judith A. Shizuru, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor, Medicine and Pediatrics, Stanford University

Judith C. Gasson, Ph.D.

Professor, Medicine & Biological Chemistry, UCLA

Director, UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center

Judith Campisi, Ph.D.

Professor, Buck Institute for Research on Aging

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Karen Aboody, M.D.

Professor, Developmental & Stem Cell Biology and Neurosurgery, City of Hope

Keith R. Yamamoto, Ph.D.

Professor, Cellular Molecular Pharmacology, UCSF

Vice Chancellor for Science Policy & Strategy, UCSF

Kelly A. Frazer, Ph.D.

Director, Institute for Genomic Medicine, UCSD

Kenneth C. Burtis, Ph.D.

Professor of Genetics, Faculty Advisor to the Chancellor & Provost, UC Davis

Kristiina Vuori, M.D., Ph.D.

President, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute

Kyle M. Loh, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor and Anthony DiGenova Endowed Faculty Scholar, Institute for Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine

Lana Zholudeva, Ph.D.

Research Associate, Gladstone Institutes

Lawrence Goldstein, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor, Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, UC San Diego

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Lay Teng Ang, Ph.D.

Instructor, Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanford University

Leslie Thompson, Ph.D.

Chancellor’s Professor, Psychiatry & Human Behavior, UC Irvine School of Medicine

Lihua E. Budde, M.D., Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope

Linda Malkas, Ph.D.

Professor & Associate Chair, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, City of Hope

Lindsay Hink, Ph.D.

Professor, Molecular, Cell & Developmental Biology, UC Santa Cruz

Lindsey Skrdlant, Ph.D.

Process Development Scientist

Lori Muffly, M.D.

Assistant Professor of Medicine (Blood & Marrow Transplantation), Stanford University

Maher Abdel-Sattar, Pharm.D., M.S.

Consulting Pharmacist & UCSF alumnus

Maria Grazia Roncarolo, M.D.

Co-Director, Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanford University

Marianne E. Bronner, Ph.D.

Professor & Chair of Biology Department, Caltech

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Marion Kavanaugh-Lynch, M.D., MPH

Director, California Breast Cancer Research Program

Marissa Del Real, Ph.D.

Staff Scientist, City of Hope

Marius Wernig, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Pathology, Stanford University

Martin Marsala, M.D.

Professor of Anesthesiology, UC San Diego

Matthias Hebrok, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor & Diabetes Center Director, UCSF

Michael Pulsipher, M.D.

Professor of Pediatrics (Clinical Scholar), USC

Attending Physician, Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles

Michelle Monje, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Neurology, Stanford University

Mitra J. Hooshmand, Ph.D.

Adjunct Professor, UCLA

Nicole Bournias-Vardiabasis, Ph.D.

Professor, Department of Biology, California State University, San Bernardino

Olaia Fernandez Vila, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Scientist, Gladstone Institute for Cardiovascular Research

Oliver T. Brooks, M.D.

President, National Medical Association

Chief Medical Officer, Watts Healthcare

Oswald Steward, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor, Anatomy & Neurobiology, UC Irvine

Patient Advocate, Spinal Cord Injury

Owen Witte, M.D.

Founding Director, Broad Stem Cell Research Center, UCLA

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Pamela Freeman-Fobbs, J.D.

Former President, Auxiliary to the National Medical Association

Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D.

Professor, Cell Biology and Human Anatomy, UC Davis

Paula Cannon, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor, Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, USC

Peter Coffey, Ph.D.

Co-Director, Center for Stem Cell Biology & Engineering, UC Santa Barbara

Peter Donovan, Ph.D.

Professor, Developmental and Cell Biology, UC Irvine

Peter Mackler

Executive Director of Healthcare Policy, City of Hope

Peyman Saadat, M.D.

Reproductive Endocrinologist, West Hollywood

Philip A. Pizzo, M.D.

Former Dean and Professor, Pediatrics, Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University

Pradeep K. Khosla, Ph.D.

Chancellor, UC San Diego

Prue Talbot, Ph.D.

Professor of Cell Biology, UC Riverside

Ravi Majeti, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor of Medicine & Chief of the Division of Hematology, Stanford University

Raymond Barglow, Ph.D.

Founder, Berkeley Tutors Network

Reza Ardehali, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Cardiology, UCLA

Robert A. Harrington, M.D.

Chairman, Department of Medicine, Stanford University

Past President, American Heart Association

Robert Del Vecchio, Ph.D.

Instructor, City College of San Francisco

Rodica Stan, Ph.D.

Staff Scientist, Center for Gene Therapy, City of Hope

Roeland Nusse, Ph.D.

Professor, Cancer Research & Developmental Biology, Stanford University

Member, National Academy of Sciences

Sarah R. Hernandez, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Research Scholar, UC Irvine

Serah Kang, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow, Gladstone Institute for Cardiovascular Disease

Shlomo Melmed, MB, Ch.B

Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dean of the Medical Faculty and Professor of Medicine, Cedars-Sinai

Professor & Associate Dean, UCLA School of Medicine

Shohreh Sabeti, DDS

Dentist, Sabeti Cosmetic Dentistry

Siddhartha Jaiswal, M.D., Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Pathology, Stanford University

Sidney Golub, Ph.D.

Professor & Director Emeritus, UC Irvine Stem Cell Research Center

Tamara Roach, Ph.D.

Research Specialist, UCSF

Todd C. McDevitt, Ph.D.

Senior Investigator, Gladstone Institutes

Professor, Departments of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, UCSF

Tracy Grikscheit, M.D.

Chief of Pediatric Surgery, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles

Wen-Chung Chang, Ph.D.

Staff Scientist, City of Hope

William Lowry, Ph.D.

Professor, Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, UCLA

Wise Young, M.D., Ph.D.

Founding Director, W.M. Keck Center for Collaborative Neuroscience, Rutgers University

Zhiqiang (Daniel) Wang, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Cancer Biology, City of Hope

Zinat Choudhury, M.D.

Family Medicine Physician

Don C. Reed is the author of “CALIFORNIA CURES” and other books on stem cell research.

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