A potential new treatment ... without human cloning?

This morning's Chicago Tribune has this story about a new potential breakthrough in which doctors in Japan have used stem cells - derived from liposunctioned fat - to help reconstruct the breasts of women who have had lumpectomies for breast cancer:

Doctors in Japan used stem cells derived from liposuctioned fat to repair the craters left in 21 women's breasts when cancerous lumps were cut out. The lead investigator, Dr. Keizo Sugimachi, reported Saturday at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium that the procedure was safe and well-tolerated in all 21 subjects, with no signs of rejection. There was a significant improvement in breast volume, and eight months later most of the women were satisfied with the outcome. Doctors not involved in the study were cautiously optimistic.

Additional clinical trials are necessary for this potential treatment, but it shows yet another example of promising research that is being conducted for life-saving and life-improving cures ... without cloning human beings.