Ethical Issues On Cloning - Case Study Example

Lokesh Thakur Ethical Issues on Cloning Cloning is a highly debated topic in the world at present. Even though cloning has been successfully tested on animals, the applicability of cloning among humans has raised lot of ethical considerations. Many people are of the view that cloning should not be conducted among human as it is against the principles of nature. They are of the view that the meaning of life or life philosophies would be changed if cloning is accepted as an option for sustaining human life on earth. Most of the religions also argued against cloning citing ethical reasons. At the same time many others believe that cloning should be accepted as an option to satisfy the needs of infertile couples. This paper constructs a case in which a person who was sexually impotent seeking the advice of a doctor in conducting cloning in order to get a child of his own heredity. Statement of Case Mr. X was a wealthy person who earned lot of money from his real estate business. In his strive to make more money; he has forgotten to construct a family life before he reaches his age of forty. Only after crossing the age forty, he started to think seriously about the necessities of a family life. A beautiful woman in her mid thirties became the wife of Mr. X at his age of forty two. The thoughts about having a child started to haunt Mr. X and his wife, once the honeymoon period was over. Mr. X became more and more realistic and practical at this period of time and he has realized the importance of having a child for looking after his wealth and business in future. Mrs. X failed to conceive even after five years from their married life. They decided to seek the advice of a doctor from one of the famous infertility clinic in New York. After a detailed examination, the doctor has concluded that the sperm count of Mr. X was inadequate for conception. Moreover, the doctor also concluded that Mrs. X has some cancer growths in her uterus and it is dangerous for her to conceive and giving birth to a child. Both Mr. X and his wife shocked by this news and they asked the doctor about the possible alternate options. The doctor has said that it is extremely dangerous for Mrs. X to conceive and giving birth to a baby because of the uterus cancer. In his opinion, artificial methods may not work in their case because of the low sperm count of Mr. X. The doctor explained that “low sperm count (Oligozoospermia) is one of the main causes of male infertility. It is considered that a man has low sperm count when he has less than 20 million spermatozoa per one ml of ejaculate” (Low Sperm Count.org). The doctor also explained that it is difficult to increase the sperm count of Mr. X because of some genetic disorders. Mr. X was not ready to become a step father. He has hated the idea of adoption. He asked the doctor about other options. As a joke, the doctor has replied that cloning is the only option available to Mr. X if he really wants a child of his own trait or genetics. Mr. X was not ready to give up. He asked more details about the possibilities of cloning and the doctor has explained the issues involved in conducting cloning among human being. Statement of Issue The doctor has explained various ethical issues and legal issues involved in human cloning. He has explained that: In cloning by nuclear transfer, the egg nucleus is removed through a microscopic laboratory procedure and replaced with a donor’s nucleus, containing the unique genes of that individual. The egg, which grows into an embryo, therefore contains only the donor’s genes. The cloned organism is a near genetic copy of its sole “parent”, (0.05% to 0.1% of genes are carried by cytoplasmic2 components such as mitochondria3) rather than a random genetic combination of two parents (Human Cloning: ethical Issues p.7-8) The doctor also explained that producing a human genetic-copy baby is unethical and the chances of failure are more than 90%. The doctor concluded that even if Mr. succeeded in having a cloned baby, the chances of deformity and disability among cloned babies are much higher than the normal babies. List of options for action Acupuncture, Electroejaculation therapy (EEJ), Transurethral Resection of Ejaculatory Duct Transurethral resection of the seminal vesicles (TURSV), Medication Hormone deficiency treatments, Clomiphene citrate (Clomid, Serophene) etc are some of the options available for treating male infertility. The doctor has explained every option and its consequences in detail to Mr. X. Statement of other relevant facts and consequences of each option The doctor has explained to Mr. X that acupuncture is one option which can be tried by Mr. X since the percentage of success is much higher than the other options available. “Acupuncture for infertility may include auricular, electrified or manual treatments. Electrified means using electric needles to cure pains and obstacles” (Murray). Electroejaculation therapy was another option advised by the doctor instead of cloning. “Electroejaculation therapy (EEJ), is a very successful form of therapy for men who have normal sperm production but cannot ejaculate because of a short circuit in the nervous system” (Treatment Options for Male Infertility). It allows the retrieval of sperm in more than 90% of patients and the success rate is more than 40%. Transurethral Resection of Ejaculatory Duct Transurethral resection of the seminal vesicles (TURSV) was the third option suggested by the doctor which can eliminate the obstruction in the seminal tract. Medication Hormone deficiency treatments can also be used if Mr. X had hormone deficiency. Clomiphene citrate (tablets) can also help Mr. X in improving the semen (Treatment Options for Male Infertility) The doctor has concluded that none of the above options available may guarantee 100% success. Moreover all the above options have certain side effects also which forced Mr. X to leave out all these options and think in terms of cloning seriously. Since Mr. X was not convinced, the doctor tried to prevent Mr. X from going after cloning, citing ethical reasons in conducting human cloning. Statement of relevant moral principles The following questions seem to be relevant while considering the option of human cloning. On what grounds could reproducing children by cloning be allowed or prohibited? Should cloning be used for sterile couples or for homosexual couples who want biological offspring? How would a child born by asexual reproduction experience life, as a unique individual or as a genetic “prisoner”? Is a cloned child simply a twin of its genetic donor, with a certain time lag? Should parents choose the traits of a future child, as is possible with cloning? (Human Cloning: ethical Issues, p11) The doctor has explained that it is difficult to give proper answers to the above questions at present. A cloned baby would be a mirror copy of the donor. In other words, two identical persons would be the end result of cloning. Naturally, no two individuals are alike. Cloning will rewrite the above principle. With the help of cloning, alike individuals are possible. At the same time the consequences of having alike individuals are difficult to anticipate because of the social and legal problems it can generate. Being a knowledgeable person, the doctor explained the ethical issues involved in human cloning with the help of some of the famous ethical theories like Kantian, utilitarian and Social contract. According to Kantian ethics; What a person should do and what a person wants to do are often not compatible. Doing what one wants to do would usually bring immediate gratification/happiness, but might not benefit the person in the long run. On the other hand, doing what one should do may cause immediate discomfort/unhappiness, even if it is good for the person (Maccarelli) “Kant identifies imagination as the very root of finite reason. He believed that reasons are subjective in most of the cases” (Rockmore). The doctor warned Mr. X about the future problems of having a cloned baby. The chances of physical, social and emotional problems are much higher in the case of a cloned baby. In short, even though Mr. X would succeed in having a cloned baby of his own genetics, his happiness may not last long since nobody can predict the future of that cloned child. In other words, Mr. X may suffer from his injudicious decision in the long run. It is not necessary that the “rights” of Mr. X would be the “right” of others. We are living in a society which consists of different people engaged in different activities having different beliefs as well. But in order to live in a society, man should follow certain norms of the society. The society always thinks in terms of the general well-being of the communities rather than the individual comfort. Under such circumstances, taking a decision which is not supported by the society is risky for Mr. X. In assessing the consequences of actions, Utilitarianism relies upon some theory of intrinsic value: something is held to be good in itself, apart from further consequences, and all other values are believed to derive their worth from their relation to this intrinsic good as a means to an end (West) “As per the arguments of utilitarian, actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness”(Mill) “Utilitarianism is an effort to provide an answer to the practical question “What ought a man to do?” Its answer is that he ought to act so as to produce the best consequences possible” (Utilitarianism). The doctor tried to convince Mr. X with the help of utilitarianism also. Utilitarian ethics always judge an action based on the utility of it. An action can be justified only if it is free from further consequences or complications. Mr. X cannot argue that his decision to proceed with human cloning is absolutely free of any negative consequences in future, since human cloning has not been conducted ever before. The third ethical theory used by the doctor in order to prevent Mr. X from proceeding with human cloning was the Social Contract theory. “Social Contract Theory has the view that persons’ moral obligations are dependent upon a contract or agreement between them to form society. Majority of the humans are self interested and they will work for preserving their interest” (Social Contract Theory). Man is a social animal and it is difficult for a person to lead an isolated life. In other words, abiding the laws of the society is necessary for a person to become a good citizen. The person should analyze the consequences of an action with respect to the interests of the society rather than his own personal interests alone. An action which causes problems to others is unacceptable to the society even if it brings good to the individual who is performing it. The doctor warned Mr. X that most of the countries prohibited human cloning by law and it would be difficult for Mr. X to overcome the legal barriers. The world community provided an answer when it declared human cloning contrary to human dignity, in Article 11 of the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights (1997), elaborated by UNESCO. In Section C of the Declaration, “Research on the Human Genome”, it is stated “Practices which are contrary to human dignity, such as reproductive cloning of human beings, shall not be permitted…”.(Human Cloning: ethical Issues p.12) Statement of my decision In my opinion, Mr. X should not proceed with his decision to proceed with human cloning since the outcomes of the cloning experiments are still controversial. The doctor’s opinions and arguments should be given priority while taking a decision about human cloning. Medical science has strong concerns about the successes, failures and consequences of conducting cloning upon human. Moreover, human cloning is legally prohibited in most of the countries. Under such circumstances, it is better for Mr. X to stop his efforts to have a cloned child. Justification for my decision Nobody knows from where we come and where we go after death. It is an accepted fact that energy, in the form of soul or spirit, is driving our body. However, science has no clue at all about the future of this energy after the death of the body. Scientific principles say that energy can neither be created nor be destroyed, but can be transformed from one form into another. In other words, science agrees that our soul or spirit may not die even after the death of our body. However, science has no clue at all about the future of the soul. Religions are the only entity in this world which explains the future of the soul with the help of the theory of God. Religions believe that the creator (God) has done all the creations in this world and only He (The God) has the authority to make any corrections or modification on human life. In short, it is better for Mr. X to abide by the laws of nature or religion since science failed miserably in unveiling the secrets behind birth and death so far. Works Cited 1. “Human Cloning: ethical Issues”. 2005. UNESCO. Web.24 December 2010. 2. “Low Sperm Count.org”. Web.24 December 2010. 3. Maccarelli, Sarah. “The Ethical Theory of Kantianism”. Web. 24 December 2010. 4. Mill, John Stuart. “Utilitarianism”.2004. Kessinger Publishing, 2004 5. Murray, Susan. “There Are Many Options Available to Infertile Couples”. 2010. Web. 24 December 2010. 6. Rockmore, Tom. “Heidegger, German Idealism and Neo-Kantianism” Publisher: Humanity Books (May 2000) 7. “Social Contract Theory”. 2004 Web. 24 December 2010. 8. “Treatment Options for Male Infertility”. Web. 24 December 2010. 9. West, Henry R. “Utilitarianism”. Encyclopædia Britannica, Web. 24 December 2010. < http://www.utilitarianism.com/utilitarianism.html> 10. “Utilitarianism”.2009. Encyclopædia Britannica. Web. 24 December 2010. Read More