Last week, President George W. Bush stated his support for a total ban on
both reproductive and research human cloning. Like most Americans, the
scientific community agrees with the president that the reproductive cloning of
another human being is morally abhorrent and medically unsafe. However, a total
ban on cloning would also criminalize promising research that could allow
scientists to explore the full therapeutic potential of embryonic stem
cells.
Embryonic stem cells are capable of differentiating into nearly
every cell type in the body, meaning they may be used as cell and tissue
replacement therapies to treat numerous diseases -- from Parkinson's and
Alzheimer's to diabetes and cancer. An essential element of this promising new
field of regenerative medicine is the use of nuclear transplantation to produce
stem cells (therapeutic cloning or research cloning, as the technique is
sometimes called). This laboratory technique can be used to generate stem cells
that are genetically identical to a patient, eliminating the risk that
transplanted cells would be subject to immune rejection.
President Bush
called this research "highly speculative." While it is true that this exciting
area of research is still quite new, it is certainly not untested. Experiments
with animals have illustrated the tremendous promise of this technology, and
scientists working with human stem cells have confirmed the potential of nuclear
transplantation. To criminalize the use of this scientific tool would be to
prevent scientists from exploring an avenue of research that many believe could
lead to some of the most important medical breakthroughs in the next few
decades.
It is natural to approach the unfamiliar with caution. But
scientific research in the United States is currently -- and will continue to be
-- conducted under strict and appropriate regulations. Scientists typically
approach their work with "care and restraint and responsibility," principles the
president cited. Cloned molecules and DNA pieces, which are fundamental to
therapeutic cloning, have been utilized for years for experimental and
diagnostic purposes as well as treatment. It is therefore difficult to argue
that, unless we ban cloning of human material in general, we will start down the
slippery slope to the cloning of a human being.
To the contrary, we have
already employed many powerful scientific procedures with careful oversight. It
is critical to understand that there are clear and appropriate ways to permit
important research using cloning techniques in human cells, while attaining the
essential goal of banning the cloning of human beings. Unfortunately,
legislation sponsored by Sen. Sam
Brownback, R-Kan., which Bush has
supported, does not find the appropriate balance.
Americans lead
healthier and longer lives because our country encourages freedom of scientific
exploration. Brownback's bill is fraught with danger as it will not only prevent
important research from occurring in the U.S. but will criminalize the
importation of therapies from other countries. Passage of this legislation will
jeopardize the pre-eminent position of the United
States as a world leader
in health research and prevent our citizens from benefiting from potentially
life-saving technologies that are likely to be forthcoming from other developed
countries.
In his statement, the president acknowledged important recent
advances in medical research, among them the mapping of the human genome. This
and other scientific discoveries are providing exciting new resources to help
scientists understand and treat human disease. To use this new information to
the fullest, we must place in the hands of scientists the tools they need to
turn scientific discoveries into treatment.
This research will be
conducted with nothing short of the highest ethical standards. Denying the hope
of new therapies to the millions of Americans afflicted with devastating
diseases would, in fact, be the most ethically troubling of
all.
COMMENTARY \ Steven L. Teitelbaum, M.D., is a
professor at Washington University School of Medicine and president-elect of the
Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology.
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