The creation of human embryos through what is known as “therapeutic cloning” requires that a cloned embryo is created and then destroyed for the pluripotent stem cells inside. Ethically, this is problematic because human embryos are treated like garbage. Former Indiana State University biology professor Dr. David Prentice explains it like this: “The creation of any human embryo by cloning technology, and the wanton destruction of a human embryo for experiments, is morally reprehensible. Add to this the solicitation of women with cash incentives to undergo egg harvesting, risking their health, and this is a technique replete with ethical problems.” Below are a few other problems with hESC:
- Immune System Rejection: The hESC gathered from the Cloning are not typically going to be used to heal that host, meaning wherever these hESC are used, there will be the concern that the immune sysem of the patient will reject the stem cells.
- Getting “Eggs“: For scientists to research hESCR through Cloning, they will need an immense number of eggs that must come from healthy women at a fertile age. Problems:
- Unhealthy Acquiring: For scientists to acquire the eggs, a high dosage of drugs must be given to the women so she will release from her ovaries numerous eggs. This process has been documented as dangerous and unhealthy for the women’s body.
- Money for “Eggs”: To get women to do this, research firms advertise on college campuses and similar places and offer thousands of dollars to cash-strapped and unsuspecting women. The women signing up for this are uniformed. The group Hands Off Our Ovaries, a coalition of both pro-life and pro-choice women, opposes hESCR through cloning because it requires taking advantage of women in tough circumstances for their eggs.