Why Stem Cell Should Get More Funding - Research Paper Example

Stem Cell Research and Why It Should Have More Funding Scientists consider stem cells the cure of most of the ailments of human beings, including some of the crippling diseases and human organs regeneration. It is because of the rapid advancements in this field that the potential benefits of stem cells are coming into light. However the research on embryonic stem cells is an extremely acrimonious topic in America because of the ethical issues which take into consideration the termination of embryos to harvest stem cells. In response to this ongoing debate, an amendment was passed by Dickey Wicker in the year 1995 for the purpose of prohibition of federal funding for further supporting this research. The decision was affirmed by President Bush but recently most of the restrictions were lifted by President Obama. I think that although majority of the people present all around the world do not support the research on the embryonic stem cells, it should still be funded by the Federal because of the potential health benefits related to it, opportunity for lifting the regulation for ethical research and also for the purpose of defining human beings (Stem Cell Research). The wide range of perspectives that are being used for the stem cells are constantly improving the wellbeing and health of the people. In the treatment of stem cells, the undifferentiated cells are programmed in a way that they form specific type of cells that can be later on transplanted to the afflicted area of the body. Stem cells can be used for treating afflictions such as the injuries related to the spinal cord, burns, strokes, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis (Murnaghan). Stem cell is also being used for drug testing. Different untested drugs are first used on the stem cells, which later develop into different target tissues before directly using it on human beings. This improves safety and saves the precious lives of human beings. The transplantation of organs that are formed from the stem cells would eradicate the need of human donors. Embryonic stem cell is considered to be the most promising one because it is undifferentiated and it can easily develop into the targeted tissue. As stem cells has the ability to form specific cells; therefore they have the greatest potential for the treating some major ailments in future. One of the recent developments in the researches related to stem cells is creation of the induced pluripotent cells, which are considered to be the adult cells that become undifferentiated after a series of different treatments. There are a number of benefits associated with the induced pluripotent, as the destruction of embryo is not included in this process and there is not issue concerning rejection or immune response because the cells come from the patient themselves. However it will take some time before this method is implemented on patients because this method of treatment is not clearly understood and it also has certain side effects attached to it. It is found that while testing animals the virus which is used for introducing stem cells resulted in causing cancer and therefore embryonic stem cells are still consider to be a debatable topic. Even in future, if the induced pluripotent cell is replaced by embryonic, the knowledge that is gained by researching on stem cells will still be applicable. However the research on stem cells is time consuming and resource intensive and therefore the debate related to the federal funding comes into action (Should the government fund embryonic stem cell research? ). It is because of the fact that the researchers have to destroy the human embryo for obtaining the stem cells is the main issue why the people are against the federal funding of the research. The termination of the embryo of the viable offspring is quite a contentious issue and the probability of its resolving in near future is not much. One compromise that the critics of this research have made is that the researchers should be allowed to use the embryo that is left from the vitro fertilization that would never turn into the child. During the process of vitro fertilization many embryo are created hoping that at least some would be successful. At times not all the embryos that have been developed by the researchers are needed. One of the doctoral candidate in the ethics and history of medicine and public health in the Social-medical Sciences department, at Columbia University states that there are about hundreds of thousands embryos present in the frozen storage of America. Eventually the patients may finish their whole family and will still be some embryos remaining. They are called “the spare embryos”. They then have to decide that whether they should discard the embryos or they should be donated for stem cell research or to the fertility patients. If the parents give their consent than the embryo can be utilize for the purpose of research. These embryos can then be used for creating children and the rest would be maintained in storage. Using the embryos for research is a very intelligent use of this resource (Funding the Future: Embryonic Stem Cell Research). I support the fact the stem cell research should be supported by Federal funds because if the government supports the funding then they would also gain the ability for establishing guidelines and regulations about the usage of money. It would also be easy for the government to impose ethical regulations. The government may also monitor the practices of the researchers and make them comply with certain regulations for the continuation of funding. The government agencies must make sure that all the embryos being used in research are obtained from the consent of the parents and from vitro fertilization clinics. They must also make sure that no embryo is sold for gaining profit. These practices related to the stem cell research will be harder to monitor if in case the government in not funding the research (What are the potential uses of human stem cells and the obstacles that must be overcome before these potential uses will be realized?). The laws related to the stem cell research are very confusing and they vary from state to state. For example the American center of progress stated that in November 2008 when the constitution was amended by the voters, it was considered illegal in Michigan to derive the embryonic stem cells because the destruction of embryos for the research was banned as per the state’s constitution. As the result of this the researchers conducting research on stem cells have to import stem cell from somewhere outside the state. Federal funding will obviously rationalize the legal aspect of the stem cells and it would also help in eradicating the unnecessary bureaucracy on federal as well as the state level. The states with ban or restrictions on stem cell research would also be forced to remove it, in order to avail the opportunity of receiving financial support from the Federal government. The scientific aspects of the stem cell are already difficult and complex and on the other hand the government adds nuisance in the form of current laws imposing restrictions and barriers on stem cells research. Promising researchers are quite reluctant to investing their resources and time into researching and studying if there is probability that it would become illegal and later they had to discontinue working on the research as it would only be a waste of time and money. Funding from the government provides researchers the money required for carrying out research while creating an incentive for them to pursue the study of stem cells. The researchers will also get the sense of security as they would be satisfied that they are no longer breaking any laws in the name research or science (Monero). Conclusion Overall the funding from the government is very much important for rapid and successful scientific progression in the area of embryonic stem cells because a number of possible treatments, ability of ensuring regulated research practices and ethical concerns are related to the surplus embryos for the purpose of research. It is also a great chance for improving the overall wellbeing and health of the human race that would else be affected because of the legal concerns. Government must generously support the stem cell research through sufficient funding because it would eventually lead to the advancement of medical science and it would contribute to the betterment of mankind. The only opposition to the stem cell research is the “moral majority”. However we must consider the fact that the advancement taking place in the field of medical science will eventually overcome all the opposition and criticism. There is no doubt about the fact that stem cells hold unrevealed possibilities about the future of science and medicine. Therefore it is the responsibility of the government to fund scientific endeavors as the stem cell research will definitely be effective in the long run. The benefits of the learning gained from the research of stem cells will cure many ailments with comparatively less money used in health expenditure, which would definitely serve as a win-win situation for the government. Works Cited Funding the Future: Embryonic Stem Cell Research. 18 April 2013. 26 April 2014 . Monero, Jonathan. Eight Reasons to Applaud Action on Stem Cells. 9 March 2009. 26 April 2014 . Murnaghan, Ian. Adult vs. Embryonic Stem Cells. 2013. 26 April 2014 . Should the government fund embryonic stem cell research? . 8 April 2014. 26 April 2014 . Stem Cell Research. 2013. 26 April 2014 . What are the potential uses of human stem cells and the obstacles that must be overcome before these potential uses will be realized? 2009. 26 April 2014 . Read More