Stem Cell Research: Should It Be Banned?
...astocyst and cultured in the lab. These cells have the potential to multiply indefinitely. So, finally, the cells are ready to be manipulated by scientists to be developed into any new vital organs they want simply by adding or removing certain proteins (Stem Cell Basics, par. 1-3). This scientific investigation is not entirely accepted by those people who strongly believe in moral and ethical values before any scientific advancement. These people state that Stem Cell Research is immoral and unethical investigation that shouldn’t be encouraged since a human embryo must be killed in order to isolate and culture embryonic stem cells. Dr. James Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family, states: “It is never morally or ethically justifiable to kill one human being in order to benefit another. By requiring the destruction of embryos — the tiniest human beings — embryonic stem cell research violates the medical ethic” (par. 3). Those people who profess their faith in God would also justify their opposition to Stem Cell Research by stating that at the moment of fertilization when sperm and egg merge and form a new genotype, the new human life begins biologically. In addition to this statement, they believe that this is the moment when the spirit is infused with the flesh to become a soul (Shannon, par. 2-3). Even though there are two very well marked opposing positions on the same issue of Stem Cell Research, both moralists and science advocates share one matching purpose: to reach the optimal condition and quality of human life, be they spiritual or physical. If we can subscribe to the idea that morality or ethic and science don’t necessarily have to oppose to each other in every aspect, that morality or ethic is not about an absolute value to inhibit any beneficial scientific advancements, we could talk about a possible solution to the polemic situation. I agree that a society with collapsed ethical and moral values and dignity of human life cannot be recompensed enough for any scientific advancement. However, I believe that in some cases these priceless values should concede to scientific advancements that would greatly benefit the quality of human life. People who are in favor of Stem Cell Research affirm that it could bring along as important advancement as vaccines and antibiotics to contribute to the longevity and higher life quality. They are very optimistic with all the medical benefits the research may contribute providing cures for “chronic, degenerative, and acute,” such as “Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Nervous System Diseases, Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases, Diseases of Bone and Cartilage, and Cancer” (Chapman, Frankel, and Garfinkel, 1, 4-6). Also, many scientists believe that this research will open “a new window” on human biology to, as a stepping-stone, ...