Document Detail


Biotech pilgrims and the transnational quest for stem cell cures.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  21082484     Owner:  NLM     Status:  In-Process    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
Thousands of patients with incurable neurodegenerative conditions from more than 60 countries have sought fetal cell transplants in China since 2001. Drawing on 24 months of ethnographic fieldwork, I investigate these transnational encounters occurring in the realm of experimental medicine. Critiquing popular notions of "medical tourism," I develop the alternative concept of "biotech pilgrimage" to reveal how faith intertwines with technology, travel, and the political economies of health care and medical research in a global era. Insights from pilgrimage theory enable us to question assumptions of leisure embedded in claims of tourism while also exploring new biopolitical practices that extend beyond the borders of the nation-state. I also demonstrate how materialist visions of salvation underlie medical practice and contribute to China's rising influence as a global technological leader.
Authors:
Priscilla Song
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Medical anthropology     Volume:  29     ISSN:  1545-5882     ISO Abbreviation:  Med Anthropol     Publication Date:  2010 Oct 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2010-11-18     Completed Date:  -     Revised Date:  -    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  7707343     Medline TA:  Med Anthropol     Country:  England    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  384-402     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Washington University, Saint Louis, Missouri 63130-4899, USA. priscillasong@wustl.edu
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