Physician Heal Thyself

The proverb is generally attributed to Jesus, though since he would not have been speaking in English we are reliant on the translation skills of a Catholic priest named William Tyndal who was executed and burned at the stake for these 'heresies' in 1536. The moral behind the proverb is counsel to attend to one's own defects rather than criticizing defects in others. But as is the way with some ancient texts, modern science while not disputing the moral aspects of the original have managed, or are well on the way to making the actual heading come true.

We live in an age when regenerative medicine, a broad definition for innovative medical therapies that will enable the body to repair, replace, restore and regenerate damaged or diseased cells, tissues and organs is transforming our lives. Scientists worldwide are engaged in research activities that may enable repair of damaged heart muscle after a heart attack, replacement of skin for burn victims, restoration of movement after spinal cord injury and regeneration of pancreatic tissue to produce insulin for people with diabetes. Regenerative medicine promises to extend healthy life spans and improve the quality of life by supporting and activating the body’s natural healing.

Although the clinical benefits of cell-based therapies are already being seen, unlocking the full potential of stem cells will take decades of dedicated research. With each day, we move closer to realizing the promises of cell therapy and regenerative medicine. We already live in an age where heart, liver, kidney, lung transplants are carried out daily with even face transplants now possible. While stem cell research offers enormous potential to deliver new treatments for currently incurable illnesses, like chronic heart disease, diabetes and Parkinson's. Researchers in Germany say they have successfully tested a visual aid for patients with an inherited form of blindness, using a chip placed behind the retina and British scientists have developed the world’s first stem cell therapy to cure the most common cause of blindness, which surgeons predict will become a routine, one-hour procedure that will be generally available in six or seven years’ time.

But incredible though these advances in medicine are they only represent the threshold of a miraculous future where organs and limbs will have the ability to regenerate themselves. The coming of Nanotechnology will present new opportunities for the improvement of the quality of human life with the potential for new treatments for disease. Tiny autonomous robots or, 'nanobots,' might one day be sent into a person's body to cure cancer or repair cells, or possibly even extend the person's life span by a number of years. At this time the simple devices that have been created by nanotechnology are not of the complexity envisioned with nanomachines and nanobots but these will come in due course.

There are other even more exciting advances to come that now appear more like science fiction than medical science but that those in the 22nd century will doubtless accept these as the norm. For by then we will truly be able to say Physician Heal Thyself and know it to be a fact.