Writing from the stemistry lab
John’s cousin Maureen
by Marilyn Longstaff
His cousin Maureen has had three stem cell transplants and she is still living, although she can’t travel out of Australia. His cousin Maureen and her husband Rob/Kim think stem cell transplants are a jolly good thing.
Maureen has a fair chance of just about outliving her 96 year old mother Edith, and seeing her grandchildren grow up. Two of her grandchildren are adopted; two of the others, twins, started life in a Petri dish.
His cousin Maureen and her husband Rob/Kim were grateful when their daughter-in-law, Ho-chee-min gave permission for her spare embryos to be harvested for transplantation, keeping issues of life and death, and inheritance, in the family.
His cousin Tony has multiple sclerosis and is a devout Roman Catholic. This cousin Tony comes from John’s mother’s side and had no genetic connection with Maureen. Tony has a completely different opinion.
John is keeping mum.