Ethical Issues in Therapeutic Cloning José Roberto Goldim January/2003 ©Goldim/2003

Therapeutic Cloning Principles Casuistry Complex Bioethics Consequences Facts Circumstances + Alternatives ©Goldim/2003

Principles Prima facie dutiesBeneficence Benefits Risks Precautionary Principle Respect for person Privacy Veracity AutonomyJustice Person and Society ©Goldim/2003

Casuistry 2001 Robert Lanza human embryo cloning for therapeutic purposes Cloning 1996 Ian Wilmut Dolly Embryonic Stem-cells 1998 James Thomson human embryonic John Gearhart human fetal ©Goldim/2003

Facts Therapeutic Cloning Cloning of an embryo only for producing embryonic stem-cellsCloning of an embryo only for producing embryonic stem-cells Tissue repair without rejectionTissue repair without rejection ©Goldim/2003

Circumstances Scientific Aspects Science Technology Technoscience Knowledge Generation and Trasposition Common Sense Technology Technology Science Technology Common Sense ©Goldim/2003

Circumstances Moral Aspects Ethics cannot be involved, it must not be applied to science. For Christianity there is one ethics. For the Raelian movement there is another one. Ethics is always a refrain. There is no room for ethics in science. Science must be free. Claude Rael 2003 Something technically possible is not, simply because of it, morally acceptable. Donum Vitae 1987 Cardeal Joseph Ratzinger ©Goldim/2003

Circumstances Paradox: As the embryo is not human it can be aborted, Because the embryo is human we want to use it for research. Kristina Kercher Kenneally 2002 Moral Aspects ©Goldim/2003

Circumstances Moral Aspects... therapeutic cloning must be considered as a solidarity duty for future generations... C. Petitnicolas e M. Perez. Les Enjeux du clonage thérapeutique. Le Figaro 19/01/2002 Future generations have the right to inherit an intact planet. They do not have the right for miraculous healing. Hans Jonas (1968) Hans Jonas (1968) Ética, medicina e técnica. Lisboa: Veja, 1994:139. ©Goldim/2003

Brazil Federal Constitution– 1988Federal Constitution– 1988 Civil Code – 2003Civil Code – 2003 Genetic Engineering Act 8974/95Genetic Engineering Act 8974/95 Technical Directive CTNBIO 08/97Technical Directive CTNBIO 08/97 Circumstances Legal Aspects ©Goldim/2003

Circumstances United States % therapeutic cloning 13% reproductive cloning United Kingdom % therapeutic cloning 12% reproductive cloning Porto Alegre (ACT) 62% therapeutic cloning Porto Alegre – 2002 (CLONAID) 25% reproductive cloning Social Aspects ©Goldim/2003

Circumstances Generate positive expectations without scientific evidence Difficulties to apply this technology to health care in a short period of time Hypocrisy vs. Demagogy Psychological Aspects ©Goldim/2003

Consequences New therapeutic approaches Unforeseen hazards unknown risks Destruction of embryos Cells and Embryo trading ©Goldim/2003

Alternatives Stem-cells from outnumber viable embryos (destructive harvest) Stem-cells from embryos before implantation (non-destructive harvest) Stem-cells from embryos unfit for implantation (harvest from disposed biological material) Cord-blood stem-cells (harvest from disposed biological material) Adult stem-cells (harvest from donor or self) ©Goldim/2003

Principles Respect for Persona Thoughts on use embryo should not focus on improving reproductive technologies anymore, but in their use as mere cell sources. The challenge is establishing the rights on the very beginning of life, for embryos and fetuses must have a status. Noelle Lenoir Bioethics and 21st century, viewpoint of the jurist. Presse Med 2002;31(12): ©Goldim/2003

Ethics Applied Ethics Ethics embedded in practice ©Goldim/2003