The Stem Cell Dilemma Every day, nearly 3,000 people die while waiting for an organ transplant (D’Agnese). Moreover, 66,000 people are still on an organ donor list in the United States, few of which will ever see their name come up on that list (“Improving”). Many people believe nothing can be done about this sad fact. However, this is not the case. Studies on stem-cell research point toward a solution to this deadly problem. With efficient use of stem cells, many diseases and medical problems could be solved. Stem-cells are very young, specialized cells. Usually coming from a human embryo, they have the ability to develop into more specialized groups of cells or tissues (“Stem Cells: A Primer”). As of 2001, scientists …show more content…
Not only would stem-cells help with organ transplants, but they have also been shown to treat other diseases such as multiple sclerosis (Lee). Despite these facts, some may still think it is morally wrong to use stem-cells. There are many reasons that help prove the fact that the use of stem-cells does not equal the destruction of a life. Supporters of stem-cell research believe that embryos composed of only a few cells that are being stored in a lab are not alive, because they are frozen. They may have once had the potential to live, and though this potential was lost, it was not lost because of stem-cell research. Many of the cells that are being used come from ended pregnancies when a life would not develop anyway. If an embryo were to go unused, why not use it instead to save another life? There are actually over 110,000 embryos being stored in the United States alone, with no life in sight for them (Robinson). These embryos are not alive, and should be used instead of discarded. To make this debate even easier, stem cells may in the near future come from, for example, the ACT developed “embryos”. With the ACT’s embryos, the scientists started with human eggs, though they were not fertilized with sperm; these eggs were then coaxed into fertilization. The eggs were kept in a culture and seemed to develop like normal embryos, though they could probably never be able to develop
Given the choice, would you trade one person for multiple persons, would you give one life to save many? Now imagine that the person is already dead, would you have any objection to using them to cure diseases and save lives. It is highly debated as to whether or not stem cell researchers should be able to use stem cells from aborted babies in the research. A stem cell is defined as an undifferentiated cell of a multicellular organism that is capable of giving rise to indefinitely more cells of the same type, and from which certain other kinds of cell arise by differentiation (Stem cell). In the research stem cells from aborted fetuses or left over fetuses fertilized in in-vitro fertilization are used for medical and research purposes (Stem cell research). Stem cell research could be used to cure many diseases.
It is also considered ethically wrong to sacrifice the life of one human to save another, without their consent. It was also mentioned by the Life Notes researchers that “The stem cells that are taken from people would have eventually developed into, among other things, their hearts, brains, livers, and kidneys and so forth. Dr David A. Prentice in his research says that it is also a disadvantage that we use embryonic stem cells without fully and correctly understanding
What is a stem cell? A stem cell is an unspecialized cell, meaning it is not a heart, brain, or any other type of cell that has a special purpose,
If we were unable to research or experiment to better our society, we would not be anywhere near where we currently are in the medical world. The benefits of stem cell research really could push us that much more forward and get us that much closer to possibly finding cures for incurable diseases. This is a huge milestone for science and should continue to be researched. However, no matter the benefits stem cell research has and will remain an ethical debate for many years to come. We need to be able to open our mind to all the opportunities that stem cell research could generate instead of automatically jumping to conclusions regarding
In the past two decades, many technological and scientific advances have been made in order to make life easier for many people who suffer from cancer, disease and sickness. Among these advances there is something revolutionary called stem cells. Stem cells can help restore and regenerate almost all parts of the human body such as the heart, kidney, liver, and many other organs. Although stem cells offer a lot, there are many views against and for stem cells, and among these views lies the debate of whether stem cells should be legalized or not (NIH 2). Stem cells offer exciting new opportunities in the field of science such as regenerating human body parts, but many people are still debating whether or not the use of stem cells is
In the past few years’ embryonic stem cells have been used and tested a whole lot. Which begs the questions what are they? What do they do? Is the use of them ethical? Embryonic stem cells are cell that can turn into whatever kind of cell is needed these are also referred to as pluripotent stem cells these are obtained by uses unborn children. This leads into the point that the use of embryonic stem cells in organ transplants is not ethical because embryos are killed to use and test.
Embryonic stems are a controversial topic with morals and ethical issues. For embryonic stem cells to work you must destroy the early embryo. This in some people's eyes is destroying potential life in the embryo. There are some that believe that life begins in the blastula that has not embedded into the uterus wall. For life to occur the cell must be embedded. Religion plays a factor in the ethical dilemma in the topic because they believe it is alive and all life is precious. Stem cells can be used to heal people so they do not have to suffer. They can be used for damages to the spinal cord which is huge because the spinal cord does not heal. There are countless uses for stem cells but it all goes back to the ethical dilemma which is stem
Imagine a world where human life expectancy has increased greatly and we can grow any failing organ in our body and where people on the national human organ transplant list don't die waiting or even doesn't exist. Well this world won't exist anytime soon due to the stem cell controversy still floating around. The stem cell controversy is still to this day a topic of debate in the scientific and religious community. According to medicine.net the uses of human stem cells are, but not limited to: treating diabetes, heart
There is little argument against using adult stem cells because when used, a donor consents to donate their cells. However, there are many arguments against using embryonic stem cells because these come from embryos, one of the earliest stages of a baby. There are those who fight against it because they believe that embryos have the same rights as every other human being and should not be used for this. Some feel very strongly because while taking the cells from it, the embryo is destroyed. However, the other side to the argument is that stem cells from these embryos can be used to help save many others from death. One can see how hard it is to decide what to choose because either way, there is a death and a life on the line. This also makes it hard for researchers to get funding to continue researching. However, technological advancements may help to prevent any more disagreements by erasing the notion of using embryos at all. There is hope that there is a certain way that extracting stem cells from the embryo may not harm it at all. It also may be possible to use adult stem cells in place of the embryo cells (Levine and Miller
Stem cells are defined as “mother cells that have the potential to become any new type of cell in the body” (Cashin-Garbutt). It sounds like a tool that can be used to help another’s health, yet it is a hot issue in the modern science world. The stem cells come from spare embryo’s, existing cell lines, and therapeutic cells (EuroStemCell). Therapeutic cloning stem cells aren’t even used in patients yet and existing cell lines are well accepted. There are adult stem cells, and embryotic stem cells. The controversy surrounded by the topic comes with the embryotic stem cells. Embryo stem cells are moral, they help those with life-taking diseases, and often times there are extra embryos that are used.
Many people consider it to be unethical, but on the other hand just as many people believe it is helpful to society. Stem cells and embryos have become the new medical crutch of treating diseases. This type of research has contributed to many medical discoveries, and it continues to offer many alternatives. Embryonic stem cell Research is important to biomedical research and society because of all of the possibilities that it brings, but also it has it down falls when compared to adult stem cell research. Adult stem cell research also has complications, but this type of research is considering to be safer and has a higher success yield, when it comes to dealing with complicated diseases. With all the evidence that points to the pro of stem cell research, one can help but to remember that this research is considered unethical by a number of
While some people might say that stem cell research is immoral and unethical, others believe that it is a magical solution for almost any problem, thus leading to a very controversial issue. Scientists have been searching for years for ways to eradicate incurable diseases and perform other medical procedures that yesterday's technology would not fix. With the rapidly arising, positive research on stem cell technology, the potential that exists to restore any deficiency is in the same way, likely to destroy humanity. America is suffering from its inability to choose who holds precedence over this issue. Too many of us find it impossible to reach a basis for which our differing opinions can be shared and formed into a universal and
Opponents of the research argue that embryonic stem cell technologies are a slippery slope to reproductive cloning and can fundamentally devalue human life. Some in the pro-life movement argue that a human embryo is already a human life that is entitled to protection. The National Bioethics Advisory Commission (NBAC) has recommended a ban on human cloning due to the threats it poses to people’s safety. The NBAC position is that, “It is important to recognize that the technique that produced Dolly the sheep was successful in only 1 of 277 attempts. If attempted in humans, it would pose the risk of hormonal manipulation in the egg donor; multiple miscarriages in birth mother; and possibly severe developmental abnormalities in any resulting child.” ("HubPages") With all these risks at hand I do not think it makes sense to continue with stem cell research when there are other methods.
Stem cells are cells that have the potential to differentiate into any kind of cell type in the body. What makes them different from other cells is that they are not specialised and are capable of self-renewing for an indefinite amount of time. Stem cells can also be induced to become tissue
Stem cells are Cells with the ability to divide for indefinite periods in culture and to give rise to specialized cells. So, to put that in clearer terms, stem cells parents told them they could be anything they wanted to when they grew up, and so they did. Since stem cells are so versatile