Genetic Testing: Ethical Debate

A primary ethical issue of genetic testing could come in the form of genetic discrimination. The human

There has been much debate over altering D.N.A in the next generation of citizens. Many people are disagreeing over the ethics involved with gene editing. Using fairly new technology, Crispr-Cas 9, scientist can now alter D.N.A to eliminate some life threatening diseases and mutations by cutting out unhealthy strands of D.N.A, and replacing it with new ones. More controversially, scientist now have the power to change external appearance and character traits of babies, also know as “designer babies.” Genetic engineering should only be used in most dire situations, only to cure life threatening diseases.

The practice of prenatal genetic testing, although becoming commonplace, has been put at the center of the abortion debate in the United States. Doctors should only perform prenatal genetic testing in rare cases and very sparingly in order to protect the lives of the unborn whose genome sequence may deviate from what is considered genetically ¨normal¨. Although ¨testing and abortion are not synonymous¨ (Rebouché and Rothenberg 993) these two have begun to form a clear connection in a world where abortion is now acceptable. While prenatal genetic testing makes improvements every year, there still is a risk of harming the unborn, yet living child. Not only can testing bring harm to the child, it may also lead to the parent´s terminating a

Genetic analysis should be used freely in society, but only to help those who actually need it. The movie advocates the rules of your genetic makeup which leads to certain opportunities being presented to certain people with higher pedigrees than other. If a person's genetic makeup is sub-par you are unable to obtain your goals in life. While this is not true in the real world it could become a possibility in the future. The movie gives evidence of how your genetic makeup could affect who you love, what jobs you get, and expose you to certain discriminations in your life.

According to Munson (2014), through genetic screening or testing, birth of infants with debilitating or crippling defects can be avoided. Also through testing, disease and illness could be eradicated because the gene that causes the disease or illness would not be passed on to the next generation. This is consider eugenics. Some in the medical field have a negative feeling towards this, as if to be playing God. There are others in the medical field on the extreme end feel that laws should be developed that couples with known genes that cause genetic disorders must not have children or if they do selection of embryos are done (Munson, 2014). Genetic testing is expensive and not all insurance cover specialized testing and many cannot afford out-of-pocket cost. Other issues considered is that if a child is born with a genetic disorder or illness, what strain could the lifelong treatment required by the child put on the finances of the family, their insurance, or would the child qualify for state and/or federal medical benefits. Advocates for genetic testing due to the increasing cost and strain on the health care system, the amount of money spent on tests to diagnosis or treat is much cheaper than that of money spent on the care of a child with disabilities (Munson, 2012). Considerations in regards to the future of an infant born with a genetic disease or illness with regards to issues as personal image, self-esteem, and the

There are many controversial issues throughout time that have risen and led countries to disagree to with one another worldwide. Eugenics and genetic engineering on humans is a topic that many believe crosses a major ethical boundary. Many scientists and ethicists believe that gene editing on human genes is unethical at certain degrees and it should not be done until the proper precautions have been overlooked and restrictions are made.

Ethics and morality are the backbone of our society, taking different forms, whether it be religion, science, or other personal beliefs, it lays down a golden rule of what is and what isn’t acceptable. However, morality becomes difficult to apply to controversial topics, especially those such as pre-birth human enhancement and human reproductive cloning due to the fact that it applies to other humans. One of the most important topics that arise from discussing these issues is the Non Identity Problem. In order to try and provide reasoning for both pre-birth enhancement and human reproductive cloning, I will first explain what the Non Identity Issue is and its relation to genetics, then explain how it may affect one’s

Every ten seconds, an animal will be abused. One form of animal abuse that is still debated today is animal testing. Can animal experimentation really be considered abuse? Millions of animals each year are used for biomedical research across the country. But, animal testing may not be as safe as many may have originally considered. Those in favor of testing argue that animal testing increases the longevity of humanity and is a pioneer for medical research. Opponents propose safer alternative solutions, and reveal the inhumane aspects of animal testing. But, which side has a more persuasive argument?

Editing of the human genome in the past has been only a sight seen in dystopia works such as Brave New World. Now, genetic enhancement is a prevalent today and people are beginning to realize the issues that can arise from creating these designer babies. Gene editing can be helpful to eradicate life changing disabilities. Yet, the term disability does not correctly label these differently abled people, as the idea of what is considered disabled has changed overtime. To fully understand the consequences and implications of genetic selection and enhancement of human embryos, society must mature and declare lines of what is and is not ethically moral.

Ethical duties of genetic testing is a challenge among healthcare workers. Ethical dilemmas are created due to situations resulting from genetic testing. Ethical dilemmas is created when genetic testing reveals vital information to a patient and the patient refuses to disclose information to family members that can be affected. Healthcare workers are to protect the privacy of patient’s health records according to the Health Insurance Probability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) (Butts & Rich, 2016). On the other hand, according to the American Nurses Association (ANA) the primary obligation is to achieve the greatest good for the greatest number of people or the population as a whole (Butts & Rich, 2016). Healthcare workers are faced with an ethical choice. The ethical choice for genetic testing is to reveal information to family members if the greatest outcome is beneficial to the family member.

Throughout the novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley discusses a plethora of themes. She presents these themes through the characters and their actions. Some of these themes can spark some arguments and raise a few questions. One of these themes presented in Frankenstein is birth and creation and presents a significant topic in today’s world. Can man play the role of God?

After reading the articles,”Why We Should Think Twice About Giving Genetic Tests to Our Kids” ,by Michael White, and “Genetic Testing for Kids:Is It a Good Idea?”, by Bonnie Rochman, parents should not give these tests to their children.If the children did take the test the result would outway the benefits, they would have anxiety, and the testing doesn’t always work.

To what extent do you feel that genetic experimentation should be allowed, especially experiments that involve the creation of human life in the laboratory and the cloning of human beings?

Animal testing is a phrase that most people have heard but are perhaps still unsure of exactly what it involve. Whether it is called animal testing, experimentation or research, it should be defined as all testing methods on animals including, medical exploration, cosmetics, toxicology trialing, and psychological examination involving animal subjects. It is used to assess the safety and effectiveness of medications and beauty products as well as understanding how the human physiology works. While supporters believe it is necessary practice, those against animal testing believe that it involves torture and suffering to animals. Medical research is the hardest case of proposition in the debate whether animal testing should be banned or not, since it has previously yielded substantial benefits for humanity. Throughout moral, humanistic, and social perspectives animal testing is beneficial for medical evolution.

It is a controversial topic as some people argue that it is unnatural - thus unethical. Assuming that all that is against the nature is wrong, would it not mean that saving a person is also unnatural. Inaction in this case would be natural way, therefore ethical thing to do. The practice shows that it is unethical to be inactive when a person is in a danger, otherwise there would not have been a law that punishes for inaction. It does not mean that inaction is wrong, but only it question where the boundaries should lie. Some argue that it is against Christianity. Nonetheless, holy books does not have an explicitly written text about genetic screening. The arguments are only constructed from implications of the holy texts. As the holy texts might hold many different meanings, who can know for sure, if genetic screening is just or unjust way? As this topic is very complicated dilemma and needs a further debates to come to a common consensus, one should consider two outcomes: when it is morally accepted and when it is condemned as unethical thing to do. In the latter case, the choice of screening out a deaf child de facto would be unethical, as it would employ unethical means to reach the result. This paper would focus on the former case due to limitations of this papers