International Stem Cell Forum

The International Stem Cell Forum (ISCF) is made up of twenty-one funders of stem cell research from around the world. It was founded in January 2003 to encourage international collaboration and funding support for stem cell research, with the overall aim of promoting global good practice and accelerating progress in this vitally important area of biomedical science.

• The ISCF’s background and aims
• The Member organizations
• Forum initiatives and the working groups that are taking them forward
• Members’ press contacts for journalists

The Forum’s long-term aim is to help stem cell scientists achieve a range of revolutionary medical advances that will benefit people throughout the world. These potentially include:

Major new insights into fundamental cell biology and developmental processes.
Cell-based treatments to repair or replace human tissues damaged through injury.
Treatments for a wide range of serious degenerative diseases that affect millions of people world-wide and for which there are currently no cures.

ISCF key principles
ISCF Members have agreed a set of key principles that determine their approach to stem cell research, which are:

• Opposition to human reproductive cloning
• Use of adult somatic human stem cells as well as embryonic human stem cells
• The generation of embryonic human stem cell lines should be minimised
• International harmonisation of ethical and intellectual property right issues