Just got married, they were so happy, and ready to enjoy the many years ahead of them with each other. The day after their wedding, the couple headed to South America for their honeymoon. Sarah had been feeling below the weather, and a little down since the wedding rehearsal the day before the wedding, she brushed it off though because her mother told her they were just wedding day jitters. On the airplane Sarah felt so nauseous, though she still thought it was her jitters, and her nerves about traveling so far, her first time on an airplane, she decided to sleep most of the flight.
Landing in South America in the evening, Sarah felt a little better and was just excited to spend time with Tim. They headed to their hotel room to check in, and headed straight out, trying to enjoy the last bit of sunlight. Heading to the water, a museum and finally out to eat, Tim and Sarah were enjoying their newly married night.
However, at the end of dinner Sarah began to feel queasy again, this time she knew it wasn’t from wedding jitters. Tim takes her back to the hotel, and Sarah began to tremble and fall everywhere, she thought she had food poisoning, and decided to drink lots of water and sleep it off. Although when she woke up in the morning, she decided to go to the hospital, where she received heartbreaking news. The doctor told her that she had Parkinson’s disease, and she should hurry and fly back to her own doctor.
The hospital released her with medications the next day and the same day, they caught a flight back home. Arriving back home to her doctor, Sarah had tests ran on her and the doctor told her the had a possible promising solution to her disease. Ecstatic by the news of their being cure for her, Sarah was quickly saddened by the cure. The doctor told her she could be apart of the embryonic stem cell research, Sarah didn’t want to be sick her whole life, but her morals would not let an unharvested embryo, an unborn child in her eyes, be destroyed to save her life.
If you were in her position would be as conflicted as her, or would you go through with the research study? In today’s society, there are numerous types of diseases yet there are very minuscule ways in curing them. In year 1961 , Drs. James Till and Ernest McCulloch, were the first to discover embryonic stem cell research. The controversial research study of embryonic stem cells have to lead to little advantages of curing diseases, while also having disadvantages such as causing a controversial dilemma between morals (pros & cons) however it is still being funded by taxpayers’ in search of curing diseases. An embryo, is an unborn or unhatched offspring in the process of development, in particular a human offspring during the period from approximately the second to the eighth week after fertilization (after which it is usually termed a fetus).
Embryonic Stem cells, are stem cells derived from the undifferentiated inner mass cells of a human embryo. According to the National Institutes of Health, “ Most embryonic stem cells are derived from embryos that develop from eggs that have been fertilized in vitro—in an in vitro fertilization clinic—and then donated for research purposes with informed consent of the donors.” Stem cells have a prospective to of being able to develop into various numbers of cell types in the human body during the early life and growth stage. In the first five days of an embryo, called the blastocyst, inner cells give rise to the entire body of the organism, including all of the many specialized cell types and organs such as the heart, lung, skin, sperm, eggs and other tissues. According to the National Institutes of Health “ in many tissues, stem cells serve as a sort of internal repair system, dividing essentially without limit to replenish other cells as long as the person or animal is still alive.”
In a speech given by President George W, Bush during his term in whether or not “When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential either to remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialized function, such as a muscle cell, a red blood cell, or a brain cell.” According to the National Institutes of Health “regardless of their source—have three general properties: they are capable of dividing and renewing themselves for long periods; they are unspecialized; and they can give rise to specialized cell types.”, this in explanation shows great value to Stem Cells. This in summary, shows the great importance in the stem cells themselves, for regenerative medicine and tissue replacement after injury or disease. In February of 1961, Drs. James Till and Ernest McCulloch, unwittingly came upon the discovery of stem cells while during their “Radiation Research”which set the stage for all current research on adult and embryonic stem cells.
The research study of embryonic stem cells have led to a minimal success of curing diseases. According to The Hastings Center “Stem cells hold great promise for treating degenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s disease and diabetes, understanding genetic illnesses, and answering fundamental questions about human development.” This in showing the hope of an enhancement of medicine, therefore stating nothing is proven to be successful, so forth. According to the Green Garage Eco-Friendly Blog, “The use of embryonic stem cells had not yet been proven to be successful.” Groups against this research contend that there have been very few success stories of embryonic stem cells to cure diseases. In fact, there have been reports of difficulty of these cells to new specific types as well as tumor formation. There is also the concern of organ transplantation rejection of recipients that critics believe to be reason enough to stop stem cell research”.
This all in saying supports the group of those opposed to embryonic stem cell research, that if there is little advancement in such a controversial issue, the issue should be cancelled in total. Embryonic stem cell research creates an ethical dilemma dealing with morals. “ The main ethical objections are to human embryonic stem cell research, because early-stage human embryos are destroyed during the process of deriving their stem cells.” “The issue of research involving stem cells derived from human embryos is increasingly the subject of a national debate and dinner table discussions. The issue is confronted every day in laboratories as scientists ponder the ethical ramifications of their work. It is agonized over by parents and many couples as they try to have children or to save children already born.
The issue is debated within the church, with people of different faiths, even many of the same faith, coming to different conclusions. Many people are finding that the more they know about stem-cell research, the less certain they are about the right ethical and moral conclusions. My administration must decide whether to allow federal funds, your tax dollars, to be used for scientific research on stem cells derived from human embryos.¨” Listing several cons to the opposed to embryonic stem cell research, the Green Garage Eco Friendly Blog states, one con is There is no evidence that embryos have lives or not so they should not be destroyed, “ With the issue whether embryos already have a status of life, critics of embryonic stem cell research say that there is no concrete evidence. An example used is that of a patient who is comatose.
Just because he or she is not responding from stimulation is not a proof that there is no life. Critics say that the same logic should be applied in embryos. And since it is unsure that life exists in an embryo or not, no one should destroy an embryo without any concern or consideration, this in which many protesters opposed agree with. A major concern in the side opposed to embryonic stem cell research is, the research study uses taxpayers money to fund them. “ Another issue that stirs the minds of opponents is that the Federal government fund researches like these at the expense of the American people. Despite some scientists who appealed against this, the government has already spent $500 million in human embryonic stem cell research, according to reports.
Despite the passing of legislation in 1996, prohibiting the use of taxpayers’ money for stem cell research, there are still private groups who were funding researches as well. Groups who are against this, however, continue to fight for the cause, this viewing in the opposing group, protests to argue why must their tax paying money go to something that they’re against. The other side of the Embryonic Stem Cell Research Dilemma is that it can lead to advancement of curing diseases and a change in medicine. Majority of embryonic stem cells are used from discarded embryos. “The IVF process which couples undergo to have children often creates numerous embryos that are discarded. At best, before embryonic stem cell research, the embryos were kept frozen and then stored indefinitely until they became non-viable. Then they were simply thrown away. This research allows for the embryos to serve a useful purposes.”
Embryonic stem cells can be acquired ethically. “ Embryonic stem cells can be harvested from the umbilical cord after a child has been born. Even if the cord blood is being stored for future personal treatments, it is still possible to obtain a line of stem cells that can be used for research purposes. The only way this type of stem cell harvest would be considered unethical would be if the umbilical cord stayed attached to the child, which we know does not happen.”…….. Embryos are not able to feel pain. “ The required components of the central nervous system for a developing fetus to sense pain are not developed until around 20 weeks after conception. Embryos that are used for stem cell research are harvested and then destroyed long before this development would occur. Many of the embryos are frozen and have their development stopped for some time before researchers harvest the cells in the first place.” These references all in summary, stating that setting aside morals, the study of embryonic stem cells shows great promise in a greater future expansion in medicine, and more benefiting society.
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