Embryonic Stem Cell Research
What if there was a way to cure previously in-curable diseases with the help of something in the very first stages of human life, but thousands upon thousands of lives had to be taken to perfect the use of this material? That is exactly what is happening with embryonic stem cells around the world. Pro-life activists, who originally organized to stop the abortions of unborn fetuses, were most angered with the process of actually destroying an embryo solely for research purposes. However, scientists, such as Dr. Andrew Yeager of the University of Pittsburgh, argue that embryonic stem cells are the future of medicine. “This is really where, I think, so much of biomedicine is going to be going in the twenty first century”, states Yeager. Embryonic stem cells are a new and exciting medical advance that should be researched, but the biomedical technology of the future is not worth the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives now.
Although the actual procedure of retrieving stem cells from embryos is highly complicated and scientific, the ideology is quite simple. The study of stem cells that were taken from human embryos has been around since the early nineties, but until the summer of 1998, a majority of the country had been none the wiser. The country’s “non-knowledge” of this very promising medical technology may have been a blessing in disguise. With the story rapidly hitting newsstands and telecasts around the country, pro and anti-research rallies were the top headlines. Literally defined, embryonic stem cells are “undifferentiated, or unspecified cells that are unlike any other adult cell”(Stem Cells: A primer). They are unique because they are totipotent, or have the ability to form into almost any of the 220 cell types in the human body. Embryonic stem cells are taken from the blastocyst, the name given to the stage of the embryo when it is four to six days old. The blastocyst consists of two cell masses; the first is an outer “wall” of cells that are already specified and will grow to become placental tissue and membrane. The inner mass, however, is a large group of unspecified stem cells that can be manipulated and eventually used for the treatment of diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and Diabetes. Not only do stem cells show promise for cures to these diseases, but also they also offer hope for the sufferers and ...
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...for their own rights now or people fighting for the future rights of those who have no voice now. Embryonic stem cells are an important part of science today, shedding new light on the dark secrets of the human body, but the research alone is not worth scientists playing God or thousands of innocent lives being lost.
Embryonic Stem Cell Research:
Medical Advance or Moral Surrender?
Heather Zinser
Communications 12
December 5th, 2001
Senior Research Paper
Hour 4
Ms. Boll
Bibliography
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“Stem Cells: The Basics”. Online. Available at http://www.cbsnews.com
“Stem Cells: A Primer”. National Institute of Health. Online. Available at http://www.nih.gov/news/stemcell/primer.htm
Lee, Patrick and George, Robert P. “Why Killing Embryonic Human Beings is Wrong”. Online. Available at http://www.prolifeinfo.org/stemcell028.html
On January 25, 2011, Egypt dissolved into protests--a revolution thirty years in the making. The quasi-middle class (not comparable to the American standard of a middle class) of college educated youths and the working class united based on the culmination of years of corruption and abuse and the sparks that the Tunisian Jasmine Revolution and the 2011 Alexandria New Year’s Day bombings represented. The “Five Stages of Revolution” model can be applied to Egypt’s revolution, as well as some aspects of the J. Brown Paradigm of National Development, such as the Identifiable People Group, presented themselves throughout Egypt’s conflict.
Waskey, Andrew J. “Moral Status of Embryo.” Encyclopedia of Stem Cell Research. Ed. Clive N. Svendsen, and Allison D. Ebert. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2008. 347-52. SAGE knowledge. Web. 15 Apr. 2013.
Opposing Viewpoints offers unbiased opinions on the future of embryonic research as well as how they have currently been used to cure many diseases. In addition, the article specifies how developing ethical standards to ensure that the use of embryos remains moral, allows for science to remain ethical. Many of the topics mentioned in this viewpoint consider bioethics and remain consistent throughout. Essentially, the purpose of this article was to establish a middle ground between ethics and science.
Late one night a woman is driving home on the freeway, she’s hit head on by a drunk driver and killed. The man is charged with two accounts of murder; the woman, and her four-week-old embryo inside her. By law, everyone human being is guaranteed rights of life; born or unborn they are equal. The same law should be enforced concerning human embryonic stem cell research. Dr. James A. Thomson discovered stem cells in 1998 and they’ve intrigued scientist ever since. The stem cells themselves are derived from a three to four day old cluster of cells called a blastocyst and they are so coveted because they are pluripotent, meaning they can differentiate into any type of cell in the human body. Although embryonic stem cells show amazing potential to cure various disease such as cancer, congestive heart failure, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, muscular dystrophies, and more. The methods by which they are obtained is controversial. Research on embryonic stem cells is unethical, unnecessary, and purely homicide.
...ns of a morally questionable nature. It is necessary that our practices remain ethical and that we uphold the value of a human life, as this is the cornerstone of human society. Embryonic stem cell research is one such operation that forces scientists, policy makers, and the larger society to define what constitutes a human life and to find an answer to the crucial question: Is it morally acceptable to violate the rights of a human life for the for the sake of medical progress?
Fackelmann, Kathy. “Cloning Human Embryos.” Society for Science & the Public (1994): 92-93. JSTOR. Web.
...ting embryos specifically for stem cell research should not be allowed. Continued stem cell research will benefit all of mankind with its promise of medical advances. Opponents’ concerns about destroying human life will be quelled because stem cells will be taken from already doomed embryos. The federal government will be able to regulate the research and ensure that it is lawfully conducted.
The conflict surrounding stem cell research is, with ethical consideration, whether it is a good or bad. The majority of Americans are advocates due to the possibilities of medical advancement, thus saving thousands of lives. Those in opposition believe that it is against
As for me I believe that that embryonic stem cell researches should be used in the biomedical field because however you see the embryo as alive or not, the research will always go in the same way as one of the moral dilemma that says "duty to prevent or alleviate suffering" as it could help millions of people with incurable diseases.
I think that stem cell research has advanced in so many ways, with all the discoveries being made, and the new possibilities being explored. Although it still remains unethical because embryonic cells are one of the sources of stem cells. Why is somebody else’s life more valuable than someone else? Just because an embryo cannot talk, doesn’t mean, its life has any less value than a normal human being.
Every year countless people are diagnosed with cell based diseases, 7.6 million a year alone receive the petrifying news that they have cancer. But what if we could eliminate the idea that a cancerous diagnosis is the equivalent of a death sentence? The use of embryonic stem cells could, for the first time, make diseases like cancer or parkinson a non-issue. This is why the use of embryonic stem cells should not be viewed as unethical but rather a huge step towards unthinkable medical breakthroughs and the eradication of life threatening diseases.
What if there was a cure for cancer or a treatment for spinal injuries? Would you support the research? What if there was a way that you could repair damaged nerves. Some believe that stem cells may hold the answers to some of these questions. What are stem cells and why should you or I even care about them? Some believe that they are a miracle treatment waiting to happen while others believe that stem cells are highly immoral. Why does so much controversy surround the issue? Why is the conversation of stem cells feared by some and praised by others? To some stem cells are the medical hopes for the future, something for us to hang on to as we do battle with major diseases that include cancer, Parkston’s disease and spinal injuries. To others stem cell researchers are murderers who are trying to play God’s hand. A many have pledged their support to stem cell research including a few well known celebrities. Reeves’, who was best known for his role in the early Superman movies, and J. Fox two well-known celebrities, have pledged to stem cell research, both have created a private fund for the research of stem cells. This celebrity however has not swayed everyone to support stem cell researches cause. Just as there are supporters of stem cells there are those who believe that the use of stem cells is immoral. Since the first stem cells were separated there have been doctors, religious groups and even some political figure head have shown their opposition for stem cell research. Even with the knowledge and promise that stem cells show many of those who truly oppose stem cells have not changed their mind. The question is are their reasons good enough to halt the research of stem cell or are they just holding back what will soon be inevi...
Due to public awareness of science, people started realise that the stem cells have the potential in developing cell-based therapies for many uncured diseases. Objectors claimed that it is morally wrong for the government to advocate stem cell research because the research demands embryos’ destruction (National Bioethics Advisory Committee [NBAC], 1999, as cited in Nisbet, 2004).’’It’s immoral that hundreds of thousands of embryos are discarded yearly instead of used to research cures for human suffering.” (Gilbert, 2008).In 2001, President George W. Bush made his stand to oppose the stem cell research by l...
Stem cells offer exciting promise for future therapies, but significant technical hurdles remain that will only be overcome through years of intensive research. Stem Cells have the incredible potential to develop into many different cell types in the body during early life and growth. Scientists primarily work with two kinds of stem cells from animals and humans. The embryonic stem cells and the non-embryonic stem cells. Stem cells are the cells from which all other cells originate. In a human embryo, a large portion of the embryo’s cells are stem cells. These stem cells can be used for cell-based therapies. Cell-Based therapies are treatments in which stem cells are induced to differentiate into the specific cell type required to repair damaged or destroyed cells or tissues. Stem cells are versatile and offer the possibility to treat a number of diseases including Alzheimer’s, stroke, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, etc. The problem is that for the process of embryonic stem cell research and embryo will be destroyed if used. This raises a moral issue and questions of whether stem cell research is unethical or not.
The Web. 01 Dec. 2013. http://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/embryo-screening-and-the-ethics-of-human- 60561 Seck, Chris.