Embryo experimentation

The last few decades have witnessed rapid advances in our understanding of genetics and the very earliest stages of human life.  These new scientific discoveries have undoubtedly led to benefits for many people.  In Britain alone, tens of thousands of infertile couples have been able to have children through IVF since the birth of the first “test tube” baby, Louise Brown, in 1978.  And now researchers are claiming that therapies derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESC) may hold the key to treating many serious disorders and diseases.

Most of the embryos used in stem cell research are sourced from “surplus” embryos left over after IVF treatment.  IVF stands for in vitro fertilisation and it is still the primary technique used to provide infertile couples with children.  The man's sperm and the woman's egg are mixed in a Petri dish.  A number of embryos are created.  Sometimes this will be as many as ten or twelve per couple.  Two of these are implanted into the woman's womb.  The left over embryos - tiny human beings, the brothers and sisters of the implanted embryos - are then frozen or discarded.

If consent can be obtained from the parents, some of these embryos are used for research into stem cells.  Stem cells are a relatively recent discovery, and many people are still unsure as to what they are exactly.  The basic principle behind stem cells is quite simple -

Different organs in the body are made up of various kinds of cells, with very different functions; so a kidney is made up of kidney cells, the spinal column of spinal cells and so on.  A stem cell is a cell that has the potential to mature and develop into any kind of cell.  This process of maturation is known as differentiation, and results in what scientists call a somatic cell; that is, a cell which has already wholly or partially differentiated.  Stem cells can be multipotent (i.e. they can differentiate into many different kinds of cell) or pluripotent (i.e. they can differentiate into any kind of cell). 

They are found not only in embryos, but also in the umbilical cords of newborn babies and in other parts of the human body.  Stem cells from sources other than embryos are usually referred to as “adult” stem cells (as distinct from “embryonic”).  Scientists are very excited about stem cells, for the simple reason that they appear to be part of the body's natural repair mechanism and could be used in groundbreaking treatments.  Take, for example, the case of an Alzheimer's patient whose brain is deteriorating.  Stem cells could be injected into the damaged parts of the brain and would be able to proliferate and repair.  Indeed, there are already a considerable number of working treatments based on “adult” stem cells.  In one case, a Scottish woman regained the use of her legs after such treatment at a Dutch clinic.

LIFE welcomes these treatments.  Increased access to advanced medical technologies is one of the blessings of the modern age.  Our objection is not to the use of stem cells as such.  Our great ethical concern is the source of the stem cells.  We believe that it is morally wrong to obtain - or attempt to obtain - stem cells from human embryos.  Our view is simple: a human embryo is a human being, with human rights, including the right to life.  Therefore, stem cells must not be taken from embryos. 

The argument is often made that we may as well use some of the thousands of surplus embryos left over after IVF.  However, at LIFE we believe that embryos should never be artificially created outside the womb.  This means that as well as opposing embryo research, we also have a principled objection to IVF in all its forms.      

We realise that this unequivocal opposition is not popular or easy.  Stem cell therapies hold much promise.  However, there are a few other points worth noting:

• Embryos are not the only source of stem cells, and at the moment they are not even the best.  As well as the ethical issues, there are a multitude of technical problems.  Not least of these is the fact that scientists are still not sure why stem cells change into differentiated cells, so it is extremely hard for scientists to simulate this and turn a stem cell into a somatic cell.  In addition, there are serious practical, ethical and medical questions surrounding the sourcing of the embryos for research and treatment.  Many of these questions simply do not arise with stem cells taken from umbilical cords or other parts of the body.     
• Despite the huge amount of money that has been pumped into embryonic stem cell research, and the massive hype that surrounds such research, there are currently no working treatments for humans based on stem cells derived from embryos.  By contrast, there are over seventy such treatments derived from umbilical or other adult stem cells.
• Ends do not justify means.  The treatment of diseases that are currently untreatable would be a great medical advance, but we must not pursue this goal at any price. 
• The liberal attitude of the UK government to embryo research - means that Britain is isolated in Europe.  Article 18 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine states that “The creation of human embryos for research purposes is prohibited.”  The UK is one of only two countries who have refused to sign this because it is too restrictive (the other is Belgium).  Other states have refused to sign it but not because they feel it is too restrictive; five countries have refused to sign it because they see it as too liberal!
• Much embryo research has eugenic implications.  What this means is that it aims at eliminating what is perceived to be weakness and disability.  A commendable goal, you might think; but what it really amounts to is a search and destroy mission against embryos that carry genetic disability.  The destruction of embryos with genetic disorders does not cure disability; it punishes the carriers.  Eugenic embryo selection is not a cure for disability any more than killing cancer patients is a cure for cancer.