Case Study_ Creating an Ethics Case Study (1)
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Case Study: Creating an Ethics Case Study
Arianne Machgan
The University of Arizona Global Campus
PHI 208 Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Larry Baker
February 26, 2024
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Part 1: Introduction, Case Study
Having found out that your child is sick, we hope there is a way to save your child. Needing a donor to save your child? Is there a donor available to save your child's life? Genetic modification is not guaranteed to have a good outcome. It can cause more harm by increasing the
disease or cancer. However, Biotechnology shows some positive outcomes. Comparing the positive to the negative to learn the pros and cons of this cause. What outcome is going to be significant to the patient? Savior babies receive a negative reaction; those who disagree with the process have never been in a situation where a baby is required to save your sick living child. The course material that the instructor provided made me realize that it is ethical in some cases. I
see the ethic theory in the “Savior Sibling” articles and understand the good this brings. Some people may not understand or be ok with a savior baby if they have not been faced with an issue or dying disease that requires a sibling to save the sick patient. They may not know important facts about this Biotechnology. The articles I read concluded that weighting out the odds that this is viewed as moral. The research regarding savior siblings and the morals and virtues of the creditable source supports the positive in savior siblings. When the procedure goes accordingly, a sibling saves a child’s life, bringing happiness to that family. Adam Nash was born as the first savior sibling case in 2000. He was designed in a petri dish in a science lab to save his sister. She was born with Fanconi Anemia, which is a rare and dangerous genetic disease that requires a stem cell therapy donor (Contributing Author, 2022). When faced with a life-threatening decision, you are presented with consent forms and disclosure of the procedure. This situation is different concerning a savior sibling. Birthing a savior sibling is to save a family member and has everything to do with the sick patient’s life. This procedure is acceptable after the donor provides consent; this ensures they are not
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intoxicated, know all the risks, and are familiar with the methodology and the results that might accrue going through this life-changing procedure. Part 2: Ethical Question
Is creating a savior sibling ethical?
Creating savior siblings is a genetic technology, embryology, and obstetrics development.
The different concerns associated with this procedure became concerned with different ethical outcomes. Some people may argue that creating a life to save another one’s life is unethical. One
of the biggest objections is to bring a child into existence as a material or product. US President’s
Council on Bioethics member Michael Sandel says that altering germ-line cells jeopardizes the ‘code of giftedness.’ According to him, when we acknowledge our children the way they are, we welcome them as gifts, not as any item of our desire or a product of our ambition (Contributing Author, 2022).
The division on this issue is that some human rights ethicists view the embryo as a human, and some don’t. Fundamental rights are violated when the embryo is viewed as a human.
In this moral discussion, the primary moral issue is valuing human life and figuring out if creating a human to save another is unethical. The Utilitarian of using savior siblings is based on the outcome of happiness. Medical advancement allows scientists to use technology to save lives. Utilitarianism is getting the greatest happiness. In this case, saving a sick child from dying is the greatest happiness. Is creating a savior sibling ethical? When asked that question, you need
to focus on the outcome. Saving a life is positive until the majority is unhappy with the outcome. In this situation, The best thing to bring happiness to a family is to allow a savior sibling to be created. Creating the savior sibling will provide a donor who saves the sick sibling’s life. The
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family finds happiness when the savior sibling saves their sick child, and the family can have many years together.
The people impacted by this issue are the unborn child, the siblings, and the parents. The moral issue is that the parents are the one who decides if they should have a child to save the other sick child’s life. The sick siblings are affected because, without a donor, they will probably
die soon. Are the parents being unethical to bring a child into the world to save another child’s life? The unborn child is being born for the sake of the sick sibling, not just to have a new addition to the family. The issue that can raise major concerns is the unborn child's welfare. Having a child for the wrong reason can create problems for the family that they didn't think could be a concern. Part 3: Position Statement
Is using a scientific method with embryos and tissue to create a child for the reason of saving a sick child morally justifiable? The new child that is made out of embryo and tissue matching the benefit that will save a sick child is justified because you are able to save your child
and gain a new child. The technology to create the new baby will unlikely have the same disease as the first child. Some people are against using technology to create a human life. Technology should be used to save lives, but not to use other humans to do it. The arguing side favors savior siblings, which can save the life of a suffering sibling who
is dying. Genetic methods are modified genes to avoid disease. The gene-editing approach is known as CRISPR-CAS9, and it can edit DNA (Contributing Author, 2022). If a leukemia child undergoes a stem transplant using a savior sibling’s cells, the focus is on curing the disease and giving the child a happy, healthy life. Part 4: Opposition Statement
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Some people argue that it is morally wrong to create a new baby to have a child and not just value the baby for who they are. The savior sibling is a baby at the time of being a donor, so
they don’t give consent. The donor sibling can choose not to be a donor as they grow up. Children need to be valued as humans born to live a happy life. Birthing a new child to save another child shows that human life is unvalued. The donor sibling might feel used, or the only purpose for their birth was to save the sick sibling. The argument is that savior siblings lead one action to another to create the donor child. When a parent has a genetic anomaly, the mother has to get in vitro fertilization implants. The Mother then carries the embryo to full term and delivers
a healthy donor. Individuals may see the embryos as life, and the embryos that are sick get thrown out because they can’t be used. Discarding the unmatched embryos can be viewed as ethical. Some see that the parents are looking for a match to save their sick child and using the new child as a medicine. The success is affected by the IVF process, the transplant procedure as well as the mother’s age, the sick child's age, the genetic traits of the parents, and the disease advancement. Part 5: Application of Utilitarianism
Utliltarians have differences when it comes to savior siblings, and both differences have their consequences. Utilitarians' argument is focused on savior siblings being morally accepted. The family and child are happy because of the opportunities for a healthy life, strengthening the utility. Utilitarians will do anything to bring pleasure, even if it means putting a child’s well-
being life at risk as long as the act brings pleasure, and saving the sick child will bring pleasure to the family, “All we were trying to do was save this little girl’s life,” Wagner said. “This not only gave her the best chance, but it provided a safe way for the Nash family to have healthy
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children without the fear of passing along FA.” (News and Events, 2018). The savior siblings' life is not the main focus for the utilitarians, and they are focused on the sick child. References
Andrei, A (2023). ZME Science. What are designer babies — a healthcare wonder or an ethical horror?
https://www.zmescience.com/feature-post/natural-sciences/biology-reference/
genetics/what-are-designer-babies-a-healthcare-wonder-or-an-ethical-horror/
N.A. (2018). Almost two decades later, doctor reflects on using embryo selection to save young girl’s life. https://twin-cities.umn.edu/news-events/almost-two-decades-later-doctor-
reflects-using-embryo-selection-save-young-girls-life
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