Stem cells are cells that have the ability to help thousands of people. These cells can help make dreams of finally getting rid of the wheelchair or bed become realities. They have the power to differentiate into any cell type, giving scientists hope that one day they can fix and repair organs damaged by disease or birth defects and help fight against diseases that impair a person’s quality of life. However, it is not the uses or benefits that can come out of using stem cells, but it is how scientists and researchers obtain the stem cells that have sparked debate over if it is ethical, moral, or legal to first acquire, and then use, the cells for human use and research. Stem cells can be obtained through a mother having an abortion, excess …show more content…
One must consider all the facts in order to take a stance. If an embryo is considered a human being then one should take a stance against stem cell research. Conversely, one should not make such a hasty judgment so fast. One should take a moment and consider all the benefits that stem cell development can bring to the world, if done in the right moral and ethical manner. Stem cells have the capacity to bring a future of cured diseases and disorders, giving people the full quality of life they deserve. Imagine the benefits that could be reaped from this type of technology. “Scientists are interested in using stem cells to grow whole organs in the laboratory that could be used to replace a defective heart, kidney, pancreas, lung, or liver” (Panno 114). A patient would receive a kidney or lung without having to put pressure on their family to donate an organ or waiting on the donor list which could take months to find an acceptable organ for transplantation. Stem have also already demonstrated their effectiveness. “By far the most successful application of stem cells is for the treatment of leukemia’s and lymphomas” (Panno 115). These are only some of the benefits that could be received from this type of research and if supported by more and more people, could bring hope to many more patients. In the controversy over how to obtain the stem cells, one should first understand that IVF clinics create more than needed embryos for one procedure and pregnancy. These excess embryos are then saved for adoption or allowed to naturally die. It would be a much better option to allow the spare embryos that are not going towards adoption to go towards research as “many scientists believe they should” (Panno 61). Baby steps have been taken as “stem cell scientist, Doug Kerr, who was at Johns Hopkins at the time, showed me a mouse that was once paralyzed and now could bear its own weight and take steps”
Are stem cells ethical to use in medical research? The most basic cells in the human body are stem cells. Because doctors use stem cells for medical treatment of chronic ailments, stem cells play an important role in human medical research. However, despite the benefits of stem cells in medical treatment, controversy surrounds the methods employed to obtain them. Should researchers continue to use stem cells?
For the past few years stem cell research has been a widely debated topic; however, former President Clinton?s stance?allowing federal money to be spent on tightly controlled stem cell research?lead to intense debates over federal funding for stem cell research. There are four ways of obtaining stem cells, which are taken from embryos that are approximately one week old. They are using unwanted embryos from fertility clinics, embryos from aborted fetuses, cloned embryos, and embryos created for research purposes. Stem cells can also be taken out of adult bone marrow, but scientists do not think that adult stem cells hold as much medical potential. Conservatives are against federal funding for stem cell research because they feel that by doing such the government would be contributing to ?murder.? This idea is rooted in the religious beliefs, which include the belief that life begins at conception, held by conservatives. However, liberals support federal funding for the research of embryos because they question whether embryos are full human beings and believe the research could expedite potential medical breakthroughs.
Embryonic stem cells research has challenged the moral ethics within human beings simply because the point at which one is considered a “human,” is still under debate and practically incapable to make a decision upon.
" An Overview of Stem Cell Research | The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity."
One of the most heated political battles in the United States in recent years has been over the morality of embryonic stem cell research. The embryonic stem cell debate has polarized the country into those who argue that such research holds promises of ending a great deal of human suffering and others who condemn such research as involving the abortion of a potential human life. If any answer to the ethical debate surrounding this particular aspect of stem cell research exists, it is a hazy one at best. The question facing many scientists and policymakers involved in embryonic stem cell research is, which is more valuable – the life of a human suffering from a potentially fatal illness or injury, or the life of human at one week of development? While many argue that embryonic stem cell research holds the potential of developing cures for a number of illnesses that affect many individuals, such research is performed at the cost of destroying a life and should therefore not be pursued.
Stem cell research is a heavily debated topic that can stir trouble in even the tightest of Thanksgiving tables. The use cells found in the cells of embryos to replicate dead or dying cells is a truly baffling thought. To many, stem cell research has the potential to be Holy Grail of modern medicine. To many others, it is ultimately an unethical concept regardless of its capabilities. Due to how divided people are on the topic of stem cell research, its legality and acceptance are different everywhere. According to Utilitarianism, stem cell research should be permitted due to the amount of people it can save, however according to the Divine Command of Christianity, the means of collecting said stem cells are immoral and forbidden.
Because stem cells are essentially a blank slate, scientists are theoretically capable of growing any human tissue cell. There is enormous medical potential in this. Stem cell research is the next step in advancing the medical field. It is comparable to the discovery of penicillin or the inoculation for smallpox.
While many support embryonic stem cell research, some people oppose it say that it is an unethical practice. According to these people, embryonic stem cells require murdering a baby, human life is defined by rational beings, those capable of rational thought or a consciousness. In order to be rational one must have a consciousness, the ability to have thoughts and feel pain, to begin with. “For a fertilized egg, there is no consciousness and also no history of consciousness” (Stem). If abortions are allowed within the United States, why shouldn’t embryonic stem cell research be? Another claim against embryonic stem cell research is that it devalues human lives. “Some argue that researching embryonic stem cells will lead us into cloning technology” (Embryonic). While embryonic cloning is a possibility, we already possess the capabilities to clone so cloning is an invalid argument. The final argument against embryonic stem cell research is that there are alternatives, like adult stem cells. While adult stem cells may be utilized, they won’t be as effective. Embryonic stem cells are not only efficient but also renewable. They can be grown in a culture where as adult stem cells are extremely rare, if there are any. They can only be found in mature tissue. Isolating these extremely rare cells is challenging and has a high failure rate if not harvested correctly. “One major difference between adult and embryonic stem cells is their different abilities in the number and type of differentiated cell types they can become” (Stem). Using adult stem cells we might never understand our development from conception ...
As technology stem cell research intensifies, so does the controversy about whether such scientific progress is moral. In the past millennium to today the present stem cell research has become a controversial topic across the world. Stem cells are unspecialized cells that have unique regenerative abilities, allowing them to divide into specialized cell types. Understanding why these processes occur is essential to curing disease. Critics of stem cell research argue that the extraction of embryonic stem cells involves destroying an early embryo, equating the act of killing a human. Although stem cell research is a highly controversial topic, it is compulsory to continue stem cell research within ethical boundaries for the benefit of mankind.
There have been many types of medical advances, but one in particular that has been said that it can help on the treatment of different type of diseases. Stem cells are multicellular organisms that can develop many more of their kind and then give birth to new kind of cells. This types of cells come from the umbilical cord of a new born. This became a huge dilemma where there’s a competing with moral and ethical values. The rumor is a never ending debate. This dilemma is not just in the U.S.A, but all around the world since this stem cell are so effective even though there’s some places where stem cells is ether no restriction or restricted .
The ethical issues behind the method in which stem cells are obtained out weigh the benefits of stem cell therapy. We should not try to play God, in the aspect of creation of living beings just to be sacrificed for the “betterment of mankind”. Many egregious acts have been committed under the guise of “the greater good”. This is one instance in which the ends do not justify the means.
Monroe, Kristen, et al., eds. Fundamentals of the Stem Cell Debate: The Scientific, Religious, Ethical and Political Issues. Los Angeles/Berkley: University of California Press, 2008. Print
From the discussion above it is very clear that there are different opinions on the pros and cons of stem cell research. Based on the recent researches, scientists have the capability to work out the alternatives for embryonic stem cell research. And the usefulness compare to embryonic stem cell remains unknown. Undeniably, the stem cell research issue has its most complex parts to be resolved and surmounted. But perhaps we can disclose the way to carry out stem cell research with the balance of bioethics and most importantly, do no harm for humankind one day.
Drugs can be tested on stem cells that develop into the target tissue before using it on human test subjects, which improves safety. Finally, transplantation of organs created from stem cells could eliminate the need for human organ donors.... ... middle of paper ... ... The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'.
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.