[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 10 (Wednesday, February 1, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E53]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                         TRIBUTE TO ADAM SUSSER

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ROBERT WEXLER

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 1, 2006

  Mr. WEXLER. Mr. Speaker, I would like to call to your attention and 
that of Congress and the American people an inspirational story of a 5-
year-old boy named Adam Susser; whose uplifting story is a true 
testament to the hope that stem cell research brings in the quest for 
the treatment and cure of numerous diseases, injuries, and birth 
defects from which hundreds of millions of people suffer worldwide.
  Due to severe asphyxiation at birth, Adam Susser was diagnosed as 
being cortically blind with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. 
Despite recommendations that Adam be institutionalized, and despite the 
grim predictions that he would never gain the ability to see or walk; 
his parents, Gary and Judith, and his twin brother, Brandon, refused to 
give up hope. With the help of the Genetics Policy Institute, a leading 
non-profit agency dedicated to the establishment of a positive legal 
framework to advance the search for cutting-edge cures like stem cell 
research, Adam's family discovered the means to provide him with the 
medical care he desperately needed.
  Now, after receiving multiple stem cell treatments, Adam has 
miraculously recovered partial sight; he has overcome his atrophy, 
gaining the ability to move and walk; he communicates verbally and even 
goes horseback riding. While I am encouraged by Adam's astonishing 
progress against significant odds, his story casts a disturbing light 
on the current barriers that Americans face when seeking such 
treatment. Stem cell research, including embryonic-based research--
which studies stem cells with the unique capability of developing into 
any cell type--offers the greatest hope to those who suffer from a 
myriad of deadly and debilitating diseases, like Parkinson's, 
Alzheimer's, heart disease and diabetes. An even more promising aspect 
of embryonic stem-cell therapy is that it does not require expensive 
anti-rejection drugs after transplantation.
  Unfortunately, the Bush Administration policy continues to hinder the 
use of embryonic stem cells by only allowing researchers access to a 
limited number of these cells, most of which are unusable due to 
contamination. This unconscionable policy stance takes us in the wrong 
direction, as the Administration and Congress should be doing 
everything in their power to facilitate the scientific and medical 
community's search for a cure to horrific diseases afflicting millions 
in America and globally. Adam Susser's story is a shining example of 
what can be achieved through the use of stem cell therapy, and I urge 
all my colleagues in Congress to join me in recognizing his courage as 
well as his family's refusal to give up hope.

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