Thread: Stem cell research...

Oh boy! You really stuck your foot in this one! Guess what I do for a living?

I should point out that, due to the HAPPY NEW YEAR, I am quite inebriated at the moment but I'll respond anyway. (Maybe I'll regret it in the morning.)

First, very few stem cells are collected from aborted fetuses but philosophically, let's consider it anyway...

I have no freakin' clue how many abortions occur every year but I can guarantee that the number is not affected by any form of stem cell research. Given that the number of abortions that occur because a woman doesn't want to go through with a pregnancy is quite high, there is absolutely no need for a researcher to entice a pregnant woman to have an abortion simply to provide material for stem cell research. If a woman has an abortion because she doesn't want to be pregnant and the aborted fetus is to be discarded, then what is the harm in collecting stem cells from that fetus? My point is that no form of stem cell research is responsible for even one more fetus being aborted. The fetus is going to be discarded anyway, what is the harm in making use of some of the cells in it? The research is taking advantage of the available cells but it is not the cause of the abortions.

Second, there is a great distinction between embryonic stem cell research and adult stem cell research. Relatively little research is done on fetal stem cells but they would fall into the category of adult stem cells. Most research is done on embryonic stem (ES) cells because they are pluripotent, unlike adult stem cells which are simply multipotent. Now, despite Bush's objections to ES cell research, no embryos are destroyed because of ES cell research either. Just like the vast number of aborted fetuses that are readily available, there is an incredible number of surplus embryos produced from IVF procedures. Some of those embryos destined for destruction might as well have some good come from them in the form of ES cell research.

When a couple has surplus embryos from an IVF procedure, they have four options. One, they can keep the embryos frozen in perpetuity just in case they later decide to have another baby. Two, they can allow the embryos to be adopted, like Bush's photo op "Snowflake Babies." Three, they can simply have the surplus embryo discarded, dumping them literally down the drain. Four, they can be donated for research. These are the only necessary resource for ES cell research. No embryos are destroyed for ES cell research that are not already DOOMED anyway. That is the critical point. Tens of thousands of surplus embryos are dumped down the drain every year. What exactly is the harm in deriving ES cells, that might benefit scientific endeavors, from embryos that are destined to be destroyed anyway?