stem cell research?

Question

can someone briefly explain to me why people are against stem cell research? and what are the benefits of it?

im able to vote next year, and i was just thinking about a couple of things and that was one of them. im on a work computer and its restricting like every site i try to go on otherwise id look for it myself! thanks!!!

Answer 1

Religious people feel that all life is precious and that using an embryo (stem cell) (the size of a pin head) would be equal to murder. To them using the stem cell for research would kill that embryo from developing into a human being. Even if the stem cells would be used for science to save millions of people they are opposed. If it destroys 1 embryo it is too many.

When one pits religious beliefs verses science we get into a battle for sure.

People who favor stem cell research state that the stem cell first of all is acquired from a fertility bank which has these embryos set to be destroyed anyway. Whether they are destroyed for science sake or simply disposed of they are still destroyed. Would it not be more beneficial to use these stem cells to help the millions of people who could be saved with cures for Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, to grown organs etc.

We tread a very fine dangerous line when we try to bring religious ideals into scientific work.

Answer 2

The great thing about a stem cell, is that it is hasn't been programmed yet to become a specific type of cell. Early in develop cells get associated to become a certain type. So there are alot of limits to what it can be used for. For example, a bone cell, a liver cell, a blood cell, all perform different functions, have different structures, and set characteristics. A stem cell can become anything, with limitless research potential.
This is a simplified answer, but the gist of how useful it is should come across.
The problem is that the uninformed are scared with the very topic. They associate it with something they have seen from a science fiction horror movie, or relate it to mass cloning.
However it is not suprising in our culture, which takes the bible as an authority for science education.
But, it is a shame that the greatest tool in the 21st century, to break the impasses for medical breakthroughs gets squandered over 1st century psuedo science.
Don't get me wrong, you can believe the world is flat, and that the sun rotates around the earth, as the bible teaches. Just don't make the rest of us die needlessly for it, by impeding possible cures and treatments.

Answer 3

the easiest explanation i can give is a stem cell is a blank cell that can then be used to help cure diseases,, paralysis..brain damage and other things that are cause by cells being damaged
stem cells are harvested from fetuses and umbilical cords(i believe not positive on the cord part but i think that's why you can pay to have the cord preserved if you wish)
people that are against it feel that it could be used wrongly or for cloning or they are against the fact that aborted babies have been the main way researchers are getting the cells..some even fear that if the research becomes a mainstream allowable practice that the government will force abortions of people to obtain the cells (that's one of the really far out arguments against it)

Answer 4

Many good answers...
stem cells are Lego blocks - whatever you want them to be they will become.
Most come from either fetuses or extra in-vitro blasocysts although there is reason to believe that the cells can also be recovered from umbilical cord blood. As Legos, they can be used as replacement cells in heart muscles, or lung tissue, or any other component.
Why are people against stem cell research ? Because they feel that every fetus is a person, and that using a cell from them is killing. I disagree, but you need to make your own choice.

Answer 5

the reason has to do with the hateful christians. every life is sacred and christians do not want any law passed that uses humans for experiments. however, the stem cells that researchers want to use, do not come from aborted fetuses. these are already frozen embryoes that noone wants but are destroyed. why not use the stem cells from the discarted embryos? it makes no sense that people cannot benefit from this science. christians and george bush are responsible for the deaths of millions of people that could have benefited or been cured by stem cells.

Answer 6

Well the big issue is embryonic stem cell research.

The President's decision will permit federal funding of research using the more than 60 existing stem cell lines that have already been derived, but will not sanction or encourage the destruction of additional human embryos.

I think it's ridiculous that we have lost all sense of separation of church and state.
This was President Bush's first veto in office and I quote, "My religion comes before my country".

So now that we can't research these cells they get thrown away. Makes a lot of sense.

Answer 7

Good for you for researching the issues. That is the single most important thing a voter can do.

The reasons are too complex for me to get into here.. but when you think about the information I ask you to remember this: Years ago, when "in vitro" firtilization was first being done, you had people, mostly the religous right, who considered blasphemous. They called them "test tube babies" and said people were circumventing the will of god. Now they are very common. When people first started doing heart transplants, they said the same thing. Some religions to this day oppose blood transfusions. For some reason, much of the religous community fears scientific/medical advancment. They ALWAYS come around, but how many people have to needlessly die in the meantime??????

Answer 8

Stem Cell research has pro and cons. It can help people with cancer to recover faster after a chemotherapy, as being done in China. Or it can be used to cell regeneration to create a new liver, a new heart, or clone a human being itself. you decide if this is moral.

Answer 9

Ever see Aliens 3 (or was it Aliens 4) where Ripley walks into a lab and sees a bunch of cloned monstrosities tied down in misery to hospital beds or in plastic bubbles, and one of them is a clone of herself?

That's why.

The benefits of stem cell research? Not sure, but there might be some.

The disadvantages? Well, it seems pretty inhuman to clone people or embryos for scientific research and eventual destruction. (I guess it all depends upon which side of the microscope you find yourself on.)

However, if the day comes that they want to use retired adult scientists who volunteer their living bodies for such research, then I'd be for that.

Answer 10

In a nutshell, there are 2 kinds of stem cell research, embryonic and adult. The kind of stem cell research that is controversial is embryonic. The reason that many people are against embryonic stem cell research is because:
1. The stem cells are obtained from aborted fetuses, and many people believe (including myself) that abortion is morally abhorrent.
2. Embryonic stem cell research might lead down a very bad path of research agencies paying low income women money for their eggs, so that embryos for the research might be grown in a lab. Egg harvesting would be detrimental to these women health wise, and it exploits the poor.
3. Embryonic stem cell research has offered NO MEDICAL ANSWERS...the cells have proven to be too easy to turn into cancerous masses.

Adult stem cell research has proven to be the way to go, as it is already used in many different types of therapies (such as Bone Marrow Transplants) and has shown promise for years, and only keeps showing more promise...also, there is no debate over the morality of harvesting the stem cells...they are taken from an donor (Or the patient...ie, Blood Cord Banking, which is not controversial) and given to the patient.

Embryonic Stem Cell Advantages
1. Flexible—appear to have the potential to make any cell
2. Immortal—one ES cell line can potentially provide an endless supply of cells with
defined characteristics
3. Availability—embryos from in vitro fertilization clinics

Embryonic Stem Cell Disadvantages
1. Difficult to differentiate uniformly and homogeneously into a target tissue
2. Immunogenic—ES cells from a random embryo donor are likely to be rejected
after transplantation
3. Tumorigenic—Capable of forming tumors or promoting tumor formation
4. Destruction of developing human life

Adult Stem Cell Advantages
1. Special adult-type stem cells from bone marrow and from umbilical cord have been
isolated recently which appear to be as flexible as the embryonic type
2. Already somewhat specialized—inducement may be simpler
3. Not immunogenic—recipients who receive the products of their own stem cells will
not experience immune rejection
4. Relative ease of procurement—some adult stem cells are easy to harvest (skin,
muscle, marrow, fat), while others may be more difficult to obtain (brain stem cells).
Umbilical and placental stem cells are likely to be readily available
5. Non-tumorigenic—tend not to form tumors
6. No harm done to the donor

Adult Stem Cell Disadvantages
1. Limited quantity—can sometimes be difficult to obtain in large numbers
2. Finite—may not live as long as ES cells in culture
3. Less flexible (with the exception of #1 above)—may be more difficult to reprogram to
form other tissue types

Stem Cell Cures—and Failures in Humans


Adult stem cells are a “natural” solution. They naturally exist in our bodies, and they provide a natural repair mechanism for many tissues of our bodies. They belong in the microenvironment of an adult body, while embryonic stem cells belong in the microenvironment of the early embryo, not in an adult body, where they tend to cause tumors and immune system reactions.

Most importantly, adult stem cells have already been successfully used in human therapies for many years. As of this moment, NO therapies in humans have ever been successfully carried out using embryonic stem cells. New therapies using adult type stem cells, on the other hand, are being developed all the time.

It seems that many people are against adult stem cell therapy simply because they have something against people who have relgious beliefs against it, but really, embryonic stem cell research is junk science, having produced no viable therapies, it is a waste of money, time and life. Sick people don't have the luxury of time...and money, skill and time should be invested where there is already progress made.