Ethical Issues Concerning Fetal Tissue Research

Fetal tissue research is an important aspect of medical research. Fetal tissues can be obtained from many places, including hospitals, tissue banks, and abortion clinics. Conducting fetal tissue research allows us to further our education concerning diseases, vaccinations, and birth defects. Despite the importance of fetal tissue research, it raises many controversies regarding ethical issues. Many people believe that fetal tissue research should be illegal because it goes against their morals, but others see fetal tissue research as an opportunity for us to further our knowledge and education about many different medical concerns. The main ethical issue related to fetal tissue research is the concern of utilizing aborted fetuses for
People tend to believe many different things regarding when life actually begins during gestation. A lot of people, however, believe that life begins at conception, therefore, many believe that the use of fetal tissues in research is unethical because it is disrespectful to that being. Unlike adult tissue research or organ donation where the person is able to create a will or become an organ donor before they pass away, fetuses do not get a choice because they are not even born yet. A lot of people believe that the fetus or embryonic cells need to be treated with the same respect that an elderly person would when they pass away. Some people choose to have their organs donated or to have their bodies donated to scientific research. However, many believe that since the fetus or embryonic cells cannot speak for themselves, they should not be a part of fetal tissue research. Just because the mother or parents approve of it, doesn’t mean that it is ethical to give up a living being to scientific research. They believe that it should be up to that actual person, and since they cannot decide for themselves, they should not be used in the research. Overall, there are many reasons in which people oppose fetal tissue research. The main controversies include abortion, tax money, religion, and cloning. Many people believe that the use of human cells in which that human had no choice
People who believe that fetal tissue research is a great opportunity to broaden our knowledge of the human species, feel that researchers should utilize the aborted fetuses for this scientific research. Women are going to abort their babies, as long as it is legal, regardless of anyone else’s opinion. People who are advocates of fetal tissue research believe that these fetuses ought to be used for the advancement of our scientific knowledge instead of being disposed of in another way. Even though many people disagree with abortion, the opposition is that we can utilize these aborted fetuses for us to further our education since they are going to be aborted regardless. Fetal tissue research can be used to help us to better understand birth defects. Researchers can use fetal tissues to compare them with the tissues of fetuses with a birth defect. This can allow us to research the differences between them, which may help us to understand how birth defects occur and how they develop. If we are able to discover how certain birth defects occur, we can possibly discover a way to prevent them from occurring or reverse them by finding a cure. By utilizing fetal tissues, we may be able to save many other babies from suffering from various birth