Xenotransplantation And Ethical Dilemmas

After looking at all the evidence and research of Xenotransplantation, and at the issues and ethical dilemmas with this subject, my personal opinion is that scientists should stop researching and doing experiments on Xenotransplantation, and should instead be doing more research on using stem cells to create synthetic organs. Scientists have been trying to create human organs using human cells, and some may have actually accomplished just that. Scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School used adult skin cells to regenerate functional human heart tissue, but they are working on creating human organs from the patient's own cells, and not of someone else's (Ossola, 2016). Scientists have been trying to perfect Xenotransplantation

The research is also very expensive, for according to a 1996 Institute Medicine Report, the cost to test an animal for bacteria and other viruses is over $50,000, however the price may be more than that for the report was taken years ago (National Academy of Sciences, 1996). In my opinion the research and experiments of Xenotransplantation have many issues, lots of time and money is being wasted, animal and social issues have arisen, and the amount of doubt about the success of Xenotransplantation is rising. When I first started doing research on the subject of Xenotransplantation, I did not necessarily see it as an issue but rather as a great leap for researchers in the Science and Medical fields. Being able to find a solution to an enormous problem is a huge deal, and I was all for Xenotransplantation. I thought that if someday, Xenotransplantation was perfected, then millions of lives around the world could be saved, for the organ shortage issue would be resolved. However as I began to explore possible issues and ethical dilemmas within this subject, I was starting to reconsider my stance on

This is only one side to the ethical dilemma. The other side of this dilemma, are the morals associated with this subject. Many humans have issues with using organs and tissues from an animal, and don't consider it to be ethical. Not only do they not think it is right, but that it also is not safe, for they fear possible cross-species infections and the body rejecting the organ or tissue. I looked more into this and found that if the human body were to reject the organ or tissue, it could potentially die, killing the recipient. Doctors would then have to inject the body with immunosuppressive drugs, and the recipients would most likely have to take these drugs for the rest of their life, costing them hundreds of dollars (Joo, Kim, Kang, and Lee, 2010). In the end, my opinion on the subject has changed since I first began my research. I am now against the testing and research of Xenotransplantation, and would rather have scientists and doctors focus on ways on how to use human cells as a solution to the organ shortage, as I had mentioned in my personal