Stem Cell Research Argumentative Essay

Words: 1081
Pages: 5

Stem cells have been the focus of much hope concerning their potential for restoring damaged tissue in people or treating and curing certain diseases. However, stem cells have been very controversial, even with their promising abilities. The controversy lies in the consequence of creating stem cells— it involves using human embryos. Whether or not stem cells will ever live up to their medical promise, and whether stem cell studies are morally justifiable, they are a medical advancements worthy of use and experimentation. Stem cells are cells found in animals and humans have several distinctive properties. They have the ability to divide and reproduce themselves for long periods of time. They are unspecialized, meaning they do not perform a specific function like muscle cells or nerve cells. But …show more content…
If such cells can be specifically directed to produce various specialized cells, scientists argue that patients can be treated with transplanted cells. A person paralyzed by a major spinal cord injury could possibly walk again with the introduction of new nerve cells made from human embryonic stem cells. A person with diabetes could possibly avoid insulin injections if scientists could create insulin-producing pancreatic cells. Other conditions that may also be treated with stem cells include Parkinson’s disease, muscular dystrophy, heart disease, and vision and hearing loss. Stem cell research has the promise of giving scientists new information about how cells divide, reproduce, and differentiate. This information may, in turn, lead to guidance on how to treat or prevent cancer and birth defects— problems that originate from abnormal cell division and differentiation. Another possible medical gain from stem cell research is the ability to create cell lines that can be used to test experimental drugs or cancer