Human Cloning

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Controversial Issues Paper
Topic: Human Cloning
Issue # 5

John A. Robertson, “Human Cloning and the Challenge of Regulation,” The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 339, no. 2 (July 9, 1998), pp. 119-122.

George J. Annas, “Why We Should Ban Human Cloning,” The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 339, no. 2 (July 9, 1998), pp. 118-125.

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In the article that I chose there are two opposing viewpoints on the issue of “Should Human Cloning Ever Be Permitted?” John A. Robertson is an attorney who argues that there are many potential benefits of cloning and that a ban on privately funded cloning research is unjustified and that this type of research should only be regulated. On the flip side of this issue Attorney and medical ethicist George J. Annas argues that cloning devalues people by depriving them of their uniqueness and that a ban should be implemented upon it. Both express valid points and I will critique the articles to better understand their points.
John A. Robertson’s article “Human Cloning and the Challenge of Regulation” raises three important reasons on why there shouldn’t be a ban on Human Cloning but that it should be regulated. Couples who are infertile might choose to clone one of the partners instead of using sperm, eggs, or embryo’s from anonymous donors. In conventional in vitro fertilization, doctors attempt to start with many ova, fertilize each with sperm and implant all of them in the woman's womb in the hope that one will result in pregnancy. (Robertson) But some women can only supply a single egg. Through the use of embryo cloning, that egg might be divisible into, say 8 zygotes for implanting. The chance of those women becoming pregnant would be much greater. (Kassirer) Secondly, it would benefit a couple at high risk of having offspring with a genetic disease choose weather to risk the birth of an affected child. (Robertson) Parents who are known to be at risk of passing a genetic defect to a child could make use of cloning. A fertilized ovum could be cloned, and the duplicate tested for the disease or disorder. If the clone were free of genetic defects, then the other clone would be as well. Then this could be implanted in the woman and allowed to mature to term. (Heyd) Thirdly, it would be used to obtain tissue or organs...

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...ink that Robertson’s article will help those who are middle of the road accept it better and hope that those who strongly oppose it see his viewpoint. Hopefully a lot of good will come out of research like this and it will benefit millions of people from giving them new life to giving them extended life.

Works Cited
1) Robertson, John A. “Human Cloning and the Challenge of Regulation,” The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 339, no. 2 (July 9, 1998), pp. 119-122.
2) Annas, George J. “Why We Should Ban Human Cloning,” The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 339, no. 2 (July 9, 1998), pp. 118-125.
3) Kearney W, Caplan AL. Parity for the donation of bone marrow: ethical and policy considerations. Emerging issues in biomedical policy: an annul review, vol. 1. New York: Columbia University Press, 1992; 262-85
4) Kassirer JP, “Should human cloning be off limits?” The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 338, no. 2 (June 1998), pp. 905-906
5) Heyd D. Genethics: moral issues in the creation of people. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1992.
6) http://www.religioustolerance.org/cloning.htm
7) http://bioethics.gov/pubs/cloning1/executive.htm
8) http://www.humancloning.org/

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