Blouin 1 Megan Blouin Malcolm Campbell English 1102 November 12, 2013 The Benefits of Stem Cell Research

Two years ago, my grandmother unfortunately fell down a small flight of stairs that left her with a strained knee. This accident gave her two options that she had to carefully choose based on her lifestyle that she fulfills every day. These options either included limited mobility for the rest of her life or replacing her knee and qualifying her to be a patient of stem cell research. This was an easy choice for my active 70 year grandmother. She agreed to go under the knife and have her torn knee replaced with the help of stem cells being transfused into her knee through the help of an IV. The stem cells that they injected into her knee repaired the torn muscle and built a new layer of cells over the damaged ligaments in her knee which allowed her to walk again and it gave her full access to bending her knee once again. If she did not receive the treatment, doctors say that she would be more inclined to her bed and unable to do the things she is able to do today. Stem cell research is a well-known controversial topic that has many people vocalizing their personal opinions on it every single day. From the supporters to the ones who oppose it, there continues to be a wide range of disagreements among the groups about whether or not stem cell research should be allowed to be practiced in hospitals and in research buildings. Stem cell research is separated into two main groups: adult stem cells and embryonic stem cells, which is the more controversial topic of the two. Both are engaged in research solely to benefit the human race. People are entitled to their opinions but who says stem cell research is actually a bad thing?

Blouin 2 Due to its unethical background, certain groups such as the Southern Baptist Convention and anti-abortion groups will oppose stem cell research to be practiced in the medical field. Supporters of these groups believe that stem cell research pushes ethical and moral boundaries since embryos are destroyed during this process. Michelle Cretella from the American College of Pediatricians expressed that "Not only does embryonic research require taking the life of human embryos, it also prolongs needless suffering by delaying the development of more promising adult stem cell treatments and cures." of Americans however support this research since the process does not involve any type of cruel action and for the possible benefits of unused cells being able to cure damaged organs (Web-Exclusives). I am one of the many Americans who supports this specific research since it is important to understand that this type of research can cure damaged organs and since it is also known to treat specific diseases such as Parkisons and Alzheimers. A stem cell is an unspecialized cell that can produce an endless number of exact copies of itself through cell division (Stem Cell Research). Stem cells make up the formation of our whole body which is why they are important factors in our life (Jagoda). Certain stem cells such as, embryonic cells, can produce specialized cells for a variety of tissues in the human body while adult cells can only generate specific cells such as heart or brain cells. They allow our bodies to renew and repair themselves by having stem cells continually divide and multiply in ones body. Stem cells act as an internal repair system allowing our bodies to repair itself on its own means. A stem cell transplant begins with a donor and a patient. Once a patient has been given stem cells from a willing and informed donor, then they will soon begin the process of the transfusion. Besides being put on the wait list for stem cells, the patient can also donate their

Blouin 3 own stem cells if they are healthy enough (Ben-Joesph). Transfusing foreign stem cells or even your own stem cells is a multi-step process. First, doctors must decide whether or not the patients and the donors blood type match. This allows doctors to see if their body will accept or reject the foreign objects. However, if you are donating your own cells to your body, you first must have your cells harvested from your own bone marrow and then transfused into your bloodstream or into the affected organs. This process is similar to an IV injection, but instead of an IV, blood and cells are being transfused into your body where recovery after the transfusion may take a long period of time. Like any type of transfusion or anything that deals with objects being inserted into ones body, there are complications. A risk is a situation where one exposes themselves to danger whether they are informed about it or not. Risks that are involved in these kinds of research includes the process not working for the individual and the possibility of tumors, also known as Teratomas, growing after the cells are transfused in ones body. These types of benign tumors can form in ones body when a cell divides uncontrollably in one area. These growths can however be removed but the patient can no longer receive stem cells to treat their affected organs since the transfusion process failed and their body rejected the specific cells (Stem Cell Treatments). Stem cell research can be beneficial to humans for many reasons. According to David Greene, the host of NPR, stem cell research will eventually lead to treatments for diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and diabetes. Researchers can also have the benefit of growing stem cells in test tubes in order to watch the cells reaction to certain diseases. Researchers are only limited to testing the production of stem cells on animals and informed participants of the experiment as of this moment. In the future they are hoping to test the cells directly in test tubes instead of testing them on animals or humans to prevent possible pain or nuisance (Watson). This

Blouin 4 will allow researchers to gather their data more quickly and possibly find cures easier. Stem cell research basically gives researchers an insight of human health and sickness which allows them to produce more treatments for various diseases and evaluate the human body. With this, more diseases will have cures which results in less diseases in the human population. For example, years ago, people would acquire the deadly disease of Polio and many succumbed to the sickness. Once researchers find a cure to it through experimentation, they were able to treat people and prevent the disease from spreading. This could be a strong possibility for stem cell research if they continue to experiment. In the near future, heart disease, Cancer, and other genetic diseases may be wiped out from the human population leading to longer life expectancies and a healthier society. There are always two sides to an argument. The people who oppose stem cell research say it is an attempt at playing God since doctors have the ability to cure fatal diseases which allow people to live longer lives than they were intended to. Destroying a fetus can be considered as morally wrong to most humans since it can be considered as taking someones life. However, the fetus was not grown into a developed human being and the cells are taken within four or five days after the embryo is developed enough to obtain certain cells. Also, a week old embryo is merely a cluster of cells, with no brain or heart proving that the embryo is just a small gathering of cells with no human abilities. Technically, scientists are not extracting cells from a fully developed human being, they are just collecting stem cells from an undeveloped cluster of cells. Not only are these the two biggest negatives about stem cell research but there are also worries about human cloning and unnaturally long life expectancies (Embryonic Stem Cell Research). Cloning is when researchers have the ability to create an exact replication of an object such as an animal or maybe in the near future, even a human being. Steve Inskeep from NPR

Blouin 5 says critics fear it (stem cell research) may also lead us closer to human cloning. Since researchers can find cures and treatments through stem cell research, there is no doubt that they can also find a way to clone people, since they have already succeeded in cloning sheep and other animals in the past. There is no possibility of cloning people anytime soon but in the near future that could be a potential possibility. The real question here is, who would want to actually clone people and what would the advantage be of cloning them? After, much thought and research I realize that both sides (for and against) have strong evidence and claims to back up each point. I personally believe that conducting stem cell research will greatly impact the human race in a positive way due to the fact that stem cell research has more pros to it than cons. Not only will it help find more cures for people but it can also help rejuvenate damaged cells and muscles in a persons body. The most controversial aspect of stem cell research is the use of embryonic cells. This type of research is where most of the heated debates come into play and why stem cell research is viewed so negatively. Embryonic stem cells sounds exactly how it is, they are stem cells that are derived from embryos. These types of stem cells are not taken from the fertilized eggs in a womans body but are the ones that are donated to research with consent from the donors (Stem Cell Research). After the fertilized eggs are donated, scientists will then encourage the cells to grow in a tube through the process of in-vitro fertilization. Once the cells have fully developed, then scientists may extract the needed cells from the donated eggs. While this particular type of research may cause a stir in debates, embryonic stem cells are the best types of cells to use for someone since they can regenerate themselves in any part of the body. Stem cells are unspecialized to begin with but when they are transfused into someones blood, the cells will adapt to their surroundings and become specialized for that certain type of tissue or muscle

Blouin 6 (Peng, Kwok-Pui, Ping-Chung, Jian-Qing). Even though this may be sought out to be immoral or even hard to talk about, I think these types of cells are best for repairing damaged tissues and are more suitable for research than the adult cells. Another type of stem cell would be the use of adult cells. The primary role of these cells are to repair certain areas that are already damaged but these type of cells are only specific to certain parts of the body. Unlike embryonic cells that can adapt to anything, these cells can only repair organs and tissues that they are assigned to. They are just as effective as embryonic cells but they are limited to certain areas of the body causing transfusion to be a more difficult process since these cells can only be gathered from amniotic fluid and other adult cells (Stem Cell Collection). Gathering these stem cells can be done through the process of a bone marrow transplant from the consent of a willing donor. The transfusion of these cells are more acceptable because they do not involve another fetus or human being to be a part of the transfusion process. These cells can also repair organs and muscles such as the brain and heart since they were specified to repair those organs if they were damaged. With the two opposing sides separated, one must look at the overall whole of stem cell research. With its benefits of finding cures and treatments and also repairing damaged organs, one can only assume that its benefits weigh out all of the negatives. Even if it is found to be immoral, wouldnt finding a cure be more valuable to the human society? What if researchers found a cure to cancer through stem cell research? Wouldnt that be something that everyone should want? If we put away the negatives and everyones opinions, there should be a clear line between it being a benefit to the human race and opinions. Overall, I do believe that stem cell research should be conducted simply because of the overwhelming positives that go along with

Blouin 7 it. From finding cures to helping my grandma gain back mobility in her knee, stem cell research is the push forward that we need in the medical field.

Blouin 8 Works Cited Ben-Joesph, Elana. KidsHealth. Stem Cell Transplants. KidsHealth, Oct. 2012. Web. 25 Sept. 2013. Embryonic Stem Cell Research Pros and Cons | Embryonic Stem Cell Research. Embryonic Stem Cell Research. Stem Cell Research, 20 Apr. 2010. Web. 25 Sept. 2013. Jagoda, Robin. How Does Stem Cell Treatment Work? LIVESTRONG. LIVESTRONG, 18 Oct. 2009. Web. 25 Sept. 2013. Peng, Li-Hua, Kwok-Pui Fung, Ping-Chung Leung, and Jian-Qing Gao. Genetically Manipulated Adult Stem Cells for Wound Healing. Drug Discovery Today (2011): n. pag. Print. Stein, Rob. Stem Cell Milestone Revives Intense Ethical Debate. NPR. NPR, 16 May 2013. Web. 27 Sept. 2013. Stem Cell Collection. Stem Cell Harvest. Cyberfamily, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. Stem Cell Research. Stem Cell Basics [Stem Cell Information] . Stem Cell Basics, 28 Apr. 2009. Web. 27 Sept. 2013. Stem Cell Treatments. Top 10 Stem Cell Treatment Facts. International Society for Stem Cell Research, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2013. Watson, Stephanie. How Stem Cells Work. HowStuffWorks. n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2013. Web-Exclusives. Stem-cell Research and the Catholic Church. American Catholic Church, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.