Preview

Government Funding Stem Cell Research

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2176 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Government Funding Stem Cell Research
Government Funding Stem Cell Research Stem cell research is a relatively new science that is the source of much medical promise yet much controversy as well. The type of stem cells required, embryonic stem cells, are only obtainable one way: through the destruction of human embryos. In 1996, the Dickey-Wicker Amendment was passed, making the government unable to fund any research where human embryos are created or destroyed. At first the amendment was a minor obstacle the government had to work around to still get the stem cell scientists the money they needed. It wasn’t until August 23, 2010 that Judge Lamberth’s ruling halted all government funding for stem cell research. Today, stem cell research does not receive government funds as the research, though potentially life-saving, crosses moral and religious barriers that inhibit its growth as a science and as a gateway towards future medical breakthroughs. With the opposing arguments in mind, I feel the government should fund stem cell research as doing so will help speed up the research process and get us closer to saving lives and ending human suffering. There are two types of stem cells, adult stem cells (found in adults) and embryonic stem cells (found in embryos). Although both possess at least some ability to replicate and develop into mature specialized cells, such as skin cells, heart cells, or nerve cells, the adult stem cells are much less numerous than embryonic and generally much more limited in the types of cells they can form. Embryonic stem cells are pluripotent, meaning that they can form any kind of tissue and any type of cell. Embryonic stem cells are currently not used for medical treatments yet are the source of much medical promise in the near future. Obtainable only through the destruction of human embryos, embryonic stem cells can be viewed as life savers or the products of life destruction. A type of adult stem cell, the hematopoietic stem cell, is already widely used to treat leukemia;


Cited: Bothwell, Laura. "Federal Funds Should Be Used for Embryonic Stem Cell Research."Stem Cells. Jacqueline Langwith. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Judge Lamberth 's Unspoken Morality." The Hastings Center. 2010. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 27 June 2012. Keiper, Adam, and Yuval Levin. "Federal Funds Should Not Be Used for Research That Destroys Embryos." Stem Cells. Jacqueline Langwith. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Stem Cells, Life, and the Law."National Review (25 Aug. 2010). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 1 July 2012. Lewis, Andy. "Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Research Is More Ethical than Embryonic Stem Cell Research." Stem Cells. Jacqueline Langwith. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells: An Amazing Breakthrough in the Stem Cell Debate." The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 1 July 2012. President’s Council on Bioethics. "Monitoring Stem Cell Research." Medicine, Health, and Bioethics: Essential Primary Sources. Ed. K. Lee Lerner and Brenda Wilmoth Lerner. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 485-488. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 1 July 2012. Kirchstein, Ruth. "Stem Cells: Scientific Progress and Future Research Directions." Medicine, Health, and Bioethics: Essential Primary Sources. Ed. K. Lee Lerner and Brenda Wilmoth Lerner. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 72-75. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 1 July 2012.
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Embryonic Stem Cell Critical Analysis Forms
    • 2675 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Embryonic Stem Cell Critical Analysis Forms

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research Is Not Ethical. Dennis P. Hollinger. At Issue: The Ethics of Genetic Engineering. Ed. Maurya Siedler. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2005.…

    • 2675 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research
    • 718 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research

    The topic of Embryonic stem cell research carries with it a very controversial past. Some people support it, others do not. Stem cell research costs about 42 million dollars a year, how do they afford it, by the funding of private companies. However, what happens when the money runs out? Where will they get more? Will stem cell research continue? These are the questions I will be addressing in this essay.…

    • 718 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Sacrificing for the Greater Good
    • 1044 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Sacrificing for the Greater Good

    Embryos are essentially microscopic human beings. Regardless of what good they may provide to the field of medicine, the ethical controversies surrounding embryonic stem cell research are profound. Stem cells, the cells used by the human body to replenish damaged tissue, are found in both embryonic and adult form. At the adult level, stem cells can be extracted from bone marrow, but the real ethical debate arises when embryonic stem cells are introduced. “Pluripotent” embryonic stem cells are among the only type that can form any of over 200 cell types, making it the most useful and versatile. These cells are isolated from the inner cell mass of the embryo when extracted, and subsequently terminates the embryo itself, which is technically manslaughter. However, it must also be noted that embryonic stem cell research can provide effective treatments and even cures for those in need of organ transplants and other irremediable predicaments. Therefore, it is safe to say, from a utilitarian perspective, that the essential “death” of one embryo can save the lives of many, and with Jeremy Bentham’s phrase “the greatest good for the greatest number”; I believe that embryonic stem cell research is ethical.…

    • 1044 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Stem Cell Research Rhetoric
    • 1391 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Stem Cell Research Rhetoric

    Doctors, researchers, patients and virtually anyone interested in the future of medicine are intrigued by the key role human embryonic stem cell research could have in curing well-known diseases such as cancer. As much as people are curious about how it could advance medicine in incredible ways, there remains the issue of whether finding a cure using human embryos is ethically sound. The answer to this question is heavily dependent on what status society should accord to the human embryo. Bonnie Steinbock’s “The science, policy, and ethics of stem cell research” is an article published on Reproductive BioMedicine Online that digs deep into this ongoing ethical conflict.…

    • 1391 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research Persuasive Speech
    • 1431 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research Persuasive Speech

    Most of the controversy surrounding embryonic stem cell research stems from the idea that the destruction of human embryos is equivalent to killing a human being. While I do believe human life is sacred and should be protected at all costs, I also believe that if there’s a way to cure millions of people of disease then we should assess how we should go about doing that. To me, curing grandpa’s lung disease using four to five day old blastocysts seems like a reasonable option in comparison to letting him die and rendering the embryos utterly useless as they’ll sit in a freezer or be eventually thrown away. Right to Life Michigan argues that scientists shouldn’t use embryonic stem cell research because 90% of couples choose to use their embryos for future pregnancies (If They Say… You Say…). In reality, the government requires complete disclosure to the couple and their consent before scientists can do anything with their embryos (National Institutes of Health Guidelines on Human Stem Cell Research). The benefit of helping sick and ailing people is exponentially greater than letting embryonic stem cells sit and collect…

    • 1431 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research Persuasive Essay
    • 1187 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Embryonic Stem Cell Research Persuasive Essay

    Although Goldstein in his article “Providing Hope Through Stem Cell Research” determines “Ethically validated pluripotent stem cell research provides new hope for desperately ill people.”(84) , it is a risk for ethics. Moreover, the CBHD in the article “Human Stem Cell Research Is Unethical” implies “To manipulate and destroy huan embryos should make us all awake at night”(97). Thus, abiding by human embryonic stem cell research can easily create a guilty conscious. Furthermore, the CBHD declares that in the past there were numerous experiments which were driven by a crass utilitarian ethos which results in the creation of a “sub-class” of human beings, allowing the rights of the few to be sacrificed for the sake of potential benefit to many(98). Therefore, to victimize one human being in order to rescue another human being , undoubtfully, is unethical, tyrannical and against the human dignity. The CBHD also adds that “...we recognize that we are simply not freee to pursue good ends via unethical means of all human beings, embryos are the most defenseless against abuse”(99). From this viewpoint, destroying these defenseless human being is also unethical and may not be ignored. Briefly, human embryonic stem cell research is unethical and should be…

    • 1187 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Ethics of Stem Cell Research
    • 2751 Words
    • 12 Pages

    Ethics of Stem Cell Research

    Stem cell research represents a new opportunity for ethical thought and debate. Stem cells are primitive cells which have yet to specialize. Through proper coaxing, stem cells can be made to differentiate into usable body cells and eventually used for medical treatment. Though stem cell technology has been in development since the 1960’s, it was not until August of 2001, when then-president George W. Bush announced that federal funds could be allotted to embryonic stem cell research, that the issue became a hot political topic. The matter is argued with vehement fervor, but the quarrels are wrought with emotivism and partisanship more than actual valid and cogent arguments. In fact, stem cell research has a very broad range of ethical implications. The normative ethical theories, the abortion debate, and even business ethics all have a place in the discussion due to the different new moral challenges which are prompted by this blossoming technology.…

    • 2751 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Stemcell Research
    • 4323 Words
    • 18 Pages

    Stemcell Research

    McGee, G., & Caplan, A. (2003). The ethics and politics of small sacrifices in stem cell research. In M. Ruse & C. A. Pynes (Eds.), The Stem Cell Controversy (pp. 151-158). Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books.…

    • 4323 Words
    • 18 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Stem Cell Research Yay or Nay
    • 2512 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Stem Cell Research Yay or Nay

    At the heart of the political debate about whether the federal government should sponsor and pay for the research of embryonic stem cell is the cultural and political idea of when human life begins. This question is the most important one in the process of either banning or allowing and funding the research. It is clear that murder is against both the moral/ethical and legal code in this country and in most others. The question of whether life begins at conception; a point of view taken by pro-life activists, or whether life begins later on in the process when the egg forms a sense of…

    • 2512 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Stem Cell Research Legislation
    • 1443 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Stem Cell Research Legislation

    For some time now, stem cell research has been a major issue when it comes to ethics. “Ethics, science and religion became further intertwined with politics in the 1990’s, increasing the battles among congress, administrations, and other agencies” (Scott, 2006, p.153). Stem cell research is probably one of the most important scientific advancements in the past one hundred years.…

    • 1443 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Stem Cell Debate
    • 4026 Words
    • 17 Pages

    Stem Cell Debate

    What are meant by stem cells and how might they be used? There are many types of stem cell, but they share several interesting properties that set them aside from other cell types. The adult body contains hundreds of specialised or "differentiated" cell types, each playing a particular role. Some of these are long lived and do not divide, such as nerve cells; others are short lived and need to be replaced through cell division. Usually, when cells divide, their daughter cells are identical and of the same type as the parent cell. In other words they divide symmetrically. Additionally, their fate and their properties are fixed – once a liver cell, always a liver cell.…

    • 4026 Words
    • 17 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Stem Cell Research
    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Stem Cell Research

    Cited: Conte, Ronald L. “Against Embryonic Stem Cell Research”. Catholic Planet. 2 Dec 2004. Web. 29 Nov 2011.…

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Benefits Of Embryonic Stem Cell Research
    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Benefits Of Embryonic Stem Cell Research

    bstract: Embryonic stem cell research involves the destruction of an embryo after stem cells are extracted. The ethical considerations of destroying an embryo results in a controversy where proponents of the research are pitted against pro life supporters who see the destruction of the embryo as immoral. This paper addresses the objections to embryonic stem cell research, similar to those against abortion, which are rooted in the belief that it is morally impermissible to intentionally take the life of an innocent human being. The counterargument is presented such that the utilization of embryonic stem cells in research does not represent the death of a human being; instead it provides valuable life preserving medical breakthroughs, and thus…

    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    embryonic stem cell research
    • 686 Words
    • 3 Pages

    embryonic stem cell research

    This debate on embryonic stem cell research has held on over three decades. The controversy has not ended at this time. The controversy is about the work that holds immense promises from the scientific end and the opponents who view them as giving less value to human life. The most recent debate uses the very early part of development of stem cells for the potential to be alleviate conditions ranging from diabetes to Alzheimer's Disease. In 2001 the Bush Administration proclaimed a policy that permits some research with federal funds used with very strict rules. This policy has gathered little support three years later from the…

    • 686 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Health Care Policy Issue- Stem Cell
    • 718 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Health Care Policy Issue- Stem Cell

    A very controversial subject in the United States has been Stem Cell research. The United States has a very complicated legal and political history when Stem Cell laws and policies come into play. Scientifically speaking, the practice of stem cell research and treatments consists of the use of cells found in all multi-cellular organisms. There are two different types of stem cells, adult stem cells and embryonic stem cells, each come from different places. The difference is that adult stem cells are derived from mature body tissue (bone, marrow, umbilical cord, etc.) and embryonic stem cells are derived from human embryos. The argument or controversy comes mainly from the way embryonic stem cells are obtained. During vitro fertilization a pregnant woman may choose to have an abortion in which the embryo dies (NIH, 2010). Many religious groups and bioethicists are against this practice because they believe this constitutes killing a potential human being. Researchers have countered these people, saying that the embryo would have been destroyed anyway and the stem cells that live on may have the potential to save lives indirectly through research and directly through therapy (NIH, 2010).…

    • 718 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics