Why should I care about stem cell research? Researchers have only been working with human embryonic stem cells since 1998, when a group of scientists led by Dr. James Thomson at the University of Wisconsin first developed the technique to isolate and grow the cells. And, federal funds to support this research have only been available since 2001. Because a large number of researchers and universities rely on government funding for research, and because federal funding is limited by current policy, embryonic stem cell research is moving at a slower pace than adult stem cell research. In contrast, adult stem cell research has been around for more than 40 years, and the use of these cells has led to the successful bone marrow transplants and other treatments for leukemia, lymphoma and other blood disorders. To date, over 95 percent of federal funding for stem cell research goes toward adult stem cell projects.