From Nature: Stem cells in Texas: Cowboy culture

http://www.nature.com/news/stem-cells-in-texas-cowboy-culture-1.12404

Stem cells in Texas: Cowboy culture

By offering unproven therapies, a Texas biotechnology firm has sparked a bitter debate about how stem cells should be regulated.

• David Cyranoski

13 February 2013

Operating in a state that has historically bristled under big government, Celltex appealed not only to desperate patients but also to the ideals of the political and religious right and their opposition to big government and embryonic stem-cell research. It campaigned for its cause at intimate 'educational forums' at the Houstonian, arguing that it could already provide ethically acceptable treatments with adult stem cells. Patients spread the word at churches, and bloggers praised the company for asserting patients' rights. When prospective clients showed up in his office, Jones would tell them of his experience; at times, he reportedly wept. By October 2012, 233 people had been treated with Celltex stem cells.