final+draft+sheila+sierra

Abstract ** This paper describes the ethics in stem cell research. It points out the benefits of the process, what it does and how it helps individuals. Scientists have shown the many benefits that this process brings along with it and the types of diseases it can cure. The counterarguments are also pointed out, in order to show the other side of the argument, what other people think and what their beliefs are. This scientific process is a very controversial topic nowadays, since the method through which it is done is very unethical for many people.

As new technology has risen, so have new techniques, such that make life better for humanity. One example of the contemporary era is stem cell research. A stem cell is a "generic" cell that can make exact copies of itself indefinitely. In addition, a stem cell has the ability to produce specialized cells for various tissues in the body -- such as heart muscle, brain tissue, and liver tissue. Scientists are able to maintain stem cells forever, developing them into specialized cells as needed (Healthscout, 2009). Although this issue is controversial today, it brings many benefits to the individuals who depend on this source to save their lives. This newly discovered medical process promises the best results for the sick people, in which many lives are saved and the rates of survival are higher. The controversial question is whether or not this issue is unethical. Based on the characteristics of this research, it is not unethical due to the benefits it brings to many individuals who have acquired treatment. Stem cell research has benefitted many lives before and it will keep on helping many more. Ever since stem cells were discovered in human cord blood in 1978, many promises were brought to humanity. It is a research that has saved many lives since it is a process that replaces defective cells in the body with new ones. //“Survival rates were highest (33 percent) for those bone marrow transplants with matched unrelated donors.”//(Sciencedaily, 2004) The survival rates for patients have increased ever since stem cell research is available through bone marrow transplant. //“Scientists are exploring less controversial avenues of research, using adult stem cells that are trained to act like embryonic stem cells.”// (Watson, n.d.) It is an ethical procedure since researchers and scientists are trying new, non harmful ways to perform these studies and cure diseases. To demonstrate the ethics in this process, doctors will test potential drugs and medicines without the use of animal and human testers, there will be no more hurtful, unethical testing on animals and humans, reducing the ethical controversy. With this “new discovery,” a limb and an organ can be grown in a lab all by itself, outside of the human or animal body. //“Limbs and organs could be grown in a lab from stem cells and then used in transplants or to help treat illnesses.”// (Buzzle, 2010). These advancements benefit everyone, especially those who act “morally correct” according to the general denomination of the term, for example those who base their morals on religion. This research is working positively today, and it promises even more for the future of the ill people in the entire world. // Of course, there are dozens of other diseases stem cell research is also working on, including treatments for cancer and cardiovascular issues, vision or ocular disease processes like retinitis pigmentosa and corneal regeneration, as well as musculoskeletal disorders like muscular dystrophy.( //Articlesbase, 2010) Stem cell research promises the cure for many diseases in a near future. There were experiments done in mice that could not walk and stem cells were implanted in their spinal cords and they could walk again. This means that in near future cells in specific body parts will be replaced and people will be able to have a healthier future. Stem cell research is a great deal for those who need a cure and it has demonstrated positive results in humans and animals, however, there are arguments that oppose this issue. First of all, it is argued that stem cell research is a slippery slope to human cloning, in other words, it is cloning in a smaller degree, and this duplication process is considered, for many, unethical. This leads to the conclusion that those who are in favor of stem cell research are also in favor of human cloning. Additionally, the way the cells are obtained and transplanted is harmful. The bone marrow transplant is hurtful and harms the body of the donor and the researches obtain the cells through the human embryos. // A life is a life and that should never be compromised. A fertilized egg should be valued as a human life even if it is in its very first weeks. Destroying human life in the hopes of saving human life is not ethical. // (Stem Cell Research-Pros and Cons, 2008). Some believe that human life starts at the union of a sperm and egg. Thus, they believe that the usage of an embryo is killing a human being in order to save another. These statements are not reliable in terms of ethics because these methods are not necessarily true. First, stem cell research is not considered cloning because it repairs cells and changes the damaged ones for healthy ones. // “Clinics create more embryos than are needed over the course of a fertility treatment and are left with excess embryos that are often discarded.” //  (Stem Cells, n.d.). Lives are not being taken away because discarded embryos are used. The discarded embryo usage is a very huge debate, the whole reason why some people believe that stem cell research is unethical. Even though to some this might seem unethical, the embryos in the lab are not considered human life unless in the mother’s womb. //“If potential parents decide against having more children, scientists working with stem cells might ask them to consider donating the unneeded embryos to research”// (Reeves, n.d.). Many embryos are created, and couple use them to have babies, but when they do not want to have any more children, then the discarded embryos can have a better use. Concerning the pain and harm done to the body, there is anesthesia that makes the donors sleep through the process and not feel any pain at all. The ethics behind this issue is that stem cell research is not an unethical process, based on all the characteristics and new methods implied that benefit the lives of many. People can be part of this treatment, without feeling that they are doing something morally wrong. This process promises many cures in the future, for many diseases that are taking away many lives in the present. Ever since it was discovered in 1978, it has benefitted many lives and it will keep on saving many in the years to come.
 * Stem cell Research- The ethics behind the issue Sheila Sierra**

=Bibliography = //AAAS Policy Brief: Stem Cell Research//. (n.d.).March 25, 2009, http://www.aaas.org/spp/cstc/briefs/stemcells/ //Healthscout//. (2009, 04 01). Retrieved 16 2010, 2010, from http://www.healthscout.com/ency/1/007120.html Reaves, J. (n.d.). //The Great Debate Over Stem Cell Research//. March 10, 2010, http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,167245,00.html //Stem Cells //. (n.d.). March 10, 2010, http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics/stemcells/index.html Watson, S. (n.d.). //How Stem Cells Work//. March 10, 2010, http://science.howstuffworks.com/cellular-microscopic-biology/stem-cell5.htm