{"id":313,"date":"2012-01-24T12:03:22","date_gmt":"2012-01-24T20:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/accessibleinsights.info\/blog\/2012\/01\/24\/a-question-of-hope-healing-or-heartbreak-for-people-with-vision-loss\/"},"modified":"2012-01-25T08:04:30","modified_gmt":"2012-01-25T16:04:30","slug":"a-question-of-hope-healing-or-heartbreak-for-people-with-vision-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/accessibleinsights.info\/blog\/2012\/01\/24\/a-question-of-hope-healing-or-heartbreak-for-people-with-vision-loss\/","title":{"rendered":"A question of hope, healing or heartbreak for people with vision loss"},"content":{"rendered":"
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There has been a flurry of recent reports circulating around the web regarding some promising results for people who have vision loss.  These latest research results are showing the potential for the implantation of human embryonic stem cells and people who have degenerative retinal diseases, such as macular degeneration and Stargardt\u2019s disease.    Below I\u2019ve hyperlinked just a few for you.  Disseminating this news is not my purpose here, however.  I want to ask my readers a few questions about your feelings on the subject.<\/p>\n

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If I had to guess, I would imagine the responses to my questions would vary widely,  depending upon when, and under what circumstances, you lost your eyesight.  How likely would you be to participate in this sort of trial?  If your eyesight could be restored, would you leap at the chance?  What if the results were only temporary?  What if the treatment were of a nature that precluded later, potentially more promising outcomes?  What if the treatment worked for many, but not for you?  How would you feel about no longer being part of a community, such as the smaller RP community, or the larger disability community?  How much of your sense of self is defined by your vision, or lack thereof?  Would you choose a restorative treatment for yourself first, or your children?  If you are a sighted spouse of a partner who is blind, how would you feel about the change in dynamic of your relationship?  Is there any aspect of your character or personality that would be changed by restored vision loss?  What if the result was little more than an approximation of eyesight, say, the ability to perceive outlines, but no details or color?  Would you be satisfied with mere light perception?  I guess the ultimate question is, what would you be willing to settle for?      <\/p>\n

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I can think of a thousand other questions, but you get the idea.  Please comment and share your thoughts.  I think many of my sighted readers might be very surprised by some of the responses.<\/p>\n

      Click here to read Stem Cells Bring Hope<\/a><\/p>\n

Click here to go to The Lancet<\/a><\/p>\n

Click here to read AARP blog<\/a><\/p>\n

Click here to read article on Nature.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Click here to read more on clinical trials<\/a><\/p>\n

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You can also learn more by following @fightblindness on Twitter.<\/p>\n

  <\/p>\n

So, what would you do if you could change everything? <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

LL<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There has been a flurry of recent reports circulating around the web regarding some promising results for people who have vision loss.  These latest research…<\/p>\n

Continue readingA question of hope, healing or heartbreak for people with vision loss<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":145,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[10,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-data-mining","category-random-ramblings","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t