The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) launched a nationwide two-week ad campaign on stem-cell research today.

The ads, aimed at explaining the distinction between embryonic stem-cell research and adult stem-cell research, will appear in the New York Times, USA Today, the Washington Times, the National Catholic Reporter and diocesan publications.

The campaign message is that science does not have to kill in order to cure.

Cathy Cleaver Ruse, Esq., director of Planning and Information for the USCCB's Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, explains that embryonic stem-cell research requires the destruction of human life at the embryonic stage.

"Adult stem-cell research is already helping people with many diseases, including heart disease, spinal cord injury, even Parkinson's disease," she said, unlike  embryonic stem-cell research that “comes with a hefty price tag: the deliberate destruction of human life.”

The USCCB had also put out an an informational flyer, "Stem Cell Research and Human Cloning: Questions and Answers."

To view the ad, go to: http://www.usccb.org/prolife/stemcellads.htm. To view the flyer, go to: http://www.usccb.org/prolife/stemcellQ&A.pdf.