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The Pros And Cons Of Gene Therapy

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An ethical debate surrounds the topic of gene therapy. A publication from the NIH titled, What are the ethical issues surrounding gene therapy?, highlights the common concerns for gene therapy. How can good and bad uses of gene therapy be distinguished? Who decides which traits are normal and which constitute a disability or disorder? Will the high cost of gene therapy make it available only to the wealthy? Could the widespread use of gene therapy make society less accepting of people who are different? Should people be allowed to use gene therapy to enhance basic human traits such as height, intellect, or athletic ability? Currently, gene therapy research has primarily been focused on the treating of an individual’s somatic cells such as bone marrow or blood cells. This particular mode of gene …show more content…

This process is known as germline gene therapy. This is an extremely controversial subject. While Gene therapy may prevent future generations from receiving a harmful genetic disorder, it would be possible for the fetus to develop in an unexpected way or have long-term side effects that are not yet known. Since people who will be affected by germline gene therapy are not yet born, they can't choose whether or not to have the treatment. Due to these ethical concerns, the United States government does not allow federal funds to be used for research on germline gene therapy in people. (NIH 2017) Conor Friedersdorf, in a 2017 article from The Atlantic, opens with a rather controversial statement. “Designing a baby, or editing the genes of an unborn child, strikes many as risky, unseemly, unnatural, unethical, or likely to lead to a dystopian future of one sort or another. Still, I predict that within my lifetime, the United States will arrest, try, and convict some parents for refusing to edit the genes of their child before he or she is born.” (Friedersdorf

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