Medical Mecca - China

November 2004 A controversial treatment using the stem cells of aborted foetuses is producing remarkable results. Many desperate patients see it as their only hope. They come from all over the world in search of miracles. "We heard that people were coming over to China and they were getting better," explains Mike Thomas. "They were walking again, talking again, breathing again." China's lax safety regulations and different ethical considerations have enabled Dr Huang Hongyun to blaze a trail in this field. He is the only doctor in the world to inject stem cells directly into the brains or spinal cords of ALS suffers or paraplegics. His work has turned two pieces of conventional medical wisdom on their head -- that spinal injuries are untreatable and that ALS is impossible to stabilise. For the first time ever, Dr Huang has allowed tv cameras to film the extraordinary surgical procedure. In the words of patient Laura Jackson, "He does miracles here."