Therapeutic cloning differs from normal forms of cloning in that specific cells and tissues are targeted for usage. This allows citizens to live longer and enjoy healthier lifestyles, but there are many who grapple with the ethical implications of the procedure. The time has come for a much more in depth look at this controversial subject, so let’s examine the pros and cons.
List of Pros of Therapeutic Cloning
1. Less Organ Rejection
One of the most commonplace issues with organ transplantation is the possibility that the person’s body may reject the organ, treating it as a foreign object and launching an attack. By cloning the patient’s own tissues and cells, there is a far greater chance that the body will accept the new organs without experiencing the excruciating pain involved with a rejection.
2. Serious Diseases Could Be Treated
Diseases that were once thought to be completely incurable may now be able to be fixed. Instead of suffering from chronic ailments and diseases for the entirety of your natural born life, therapeutic cloning may one day advance to the point where a patient can receive an injection and cure their disease with just one quick visit to their doctor.
3. Organ Regeneration Studies Are Made Possible
Therapeutic cloning allows us to imagine a world where cells can be injected into a problematic area of a patient’s body and allow the organ to fix itself over the course of time. By integrating therapeutic cloning, scientists are able to learn more about the body’s ability to heal itself. Doing so may allow the number of organ transplants to decrease dramatically.
List of Cons of Therapeutic Cloning
1. Low Current Success Rate
While therapeutic cloning’s viability promises to increase as the years pass, its current rate of effectiveness leaves a lot to be desired. Current therapeutic cloning practices do not allow for a high success rate and for many, the process may exacerbate their conditions further.
2. Adult Cells Cannot Always Be Used
Since one of the main gripes about therapeutic cloning is the usage of embryonic cells, using adult cells as a substitute would seem to be the solution. However, adult cells have much less growth potential and scientists are limited by what they can accomplish with cells that are not embryonic, leaving them with very little recourse.
3. Could Lead To Direct Cloning
There are those who are against therapeutic cloning from an ethical standpoint. They believe that utilizing embryonic cells to repair broken organs will one day lead to the full scale cloning of human beings. While therapeutic cloning is primarily geared towards the curing of diseases, there are many in the medical field who fear that it will not remain that way.