The Immortal Cell: One Scientist's Quest to Solve the Mystery of Human Aging.

Two years ago, while anticloning legislation was under consideration in Congress, West and his colleagues cloned seven human embryos in a laboratory in Worcester, Mass. Their goal was not to produce a baby but to obtain stern cells, through the process called therapeutic cloning, that could someday cure age-related diseases. The scientists' efforts led to their condemnation by both President Bush and the Pope. Today, West heads the only for-profit entity in the United States pursuing human therapeutic cloning research. West's story is a little unusual because he once shared the views of people who are now his staunchest critics. As he reveals in this memoir, he spent the early years of his career as a committed creationist on a quest to disprove prove the theory of human evolution. His study of the fossil record convinced him to abandon that effort. While his opponents argue that people shouldn't tamper with cells that have potential for human life, West makes a passionate case for using stem cells for the benefit of people living with disease. The book includes a primer on stem cell research and an argument for its legitimacy. Doubleday, 2003, 244 p., hardcover, $24.95.