The Supreme Court (SC) has categorically barred medical practitioners from offering stem cell therapy (SCT) as a treatment for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
- ASD is a neurological and developmental disorder that affects how people interact with others, communicate, learn, and behave.
Ethical Issues Involved with use of SCT for ASD
- Proof of efficacy: It lacks proven safety and efficacy and is not recommended by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and NMC (National Medical Commission).
- Unethical commercial use: Offering it as routine treatment violates accepted medical standards and ethics (Bolam test).
- Consent Not Absolute: Patient autonomy under Article 21 does not extend to choosing unproven, unsafe therapies.
- Research-Only Permission: It is allowed only in approved clinical trials, with regulatory and ethical safeguards.
- Professional Misconduct: Its use, promotion or advertisement amounts to professional misconduct under NMC norms.
What is Stem Cell Therapy?
- It uses stem cells as a treatment for a condition.
- Stem cells are special cells, usually found in embryos and adult cells, that can turn into different types of cells and in some cases have the ability of self-renewal.
- Standard application: Leukemia and Lymphoma, Parkinson's Disease etc.
- ICMR (2021) recognises stem cell therapy as standard treatment only for hematological disorders (disorders of the blood and blood-forming organs).
- Advantages: Enables tissue regeneration; targeted treatment and potential cures, especially in diseases where conventional therapies are limited etc.
