Will Cloning Yourself Become A Reality With in 100 Years?
One of the more controversial issues facing modern society is cloning. There are benefits, but also serious ethical questions to consider. The state of medical science makes it seem likely that the opportunity to clone people will be available before the end of the century. Animal cloning has been practiced for decades and unexpected problems have presented challenges. Translating the technical and ethical details to humans will present even more challenges.
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As researchers discover more about health and wellness, they form new theories about care and test them. Every year, new and more effective treatments are found for a growing number of physical issues. Doctors are able to put more names on specific illnesses as they discover the mechanism for the condition. Understanding the cause is one of the keys for developing treatment options. Improved access to cloned organs is gaining popularity as a medical resource.
Since animal cloning has been available for years, and human medical science is advancing at a faster rate, it makes sense that the process could be available within 100 years. Some people see science moving this direction and feel they are getting into an area that they are not prepared to explore. Considering the unexpected mutations in the genes of cloned animals, there is significant risk of things going horribly wrong in human cloning.
However, this is still one of the most popular areas of research for scientists and medical professionals. There has been a lot of attention given to the controversy over the use of stem cells and the chance to grow replacement tissue genetically identical to a patient’s. While this creates the opportunity to replace diseased or damaged tissue, it opens the door to the possibility of an expansion of this type of treatment. The ethical questions of how to make sure the technology is only used ethically presents problems.
Many doctors believe stem cells could help cure several diseases as they have excellent potential for growth. This is where those who want to supervise medical professionals offer resistance. Suggesting that it is possible to grow replacement tissue is getting dangerously close to justifying the opportunity to clone a human so people have a source of spare parts.
The conversation regarding how this will affect humanity must be addressed and some say it should be strictly off limits. The medical community recognizes that human cloning is grossly unethical in its current state.
Doctors claim that care will improve so rapidly in coming years that soon people will live for 150 years. This means a lot of organs and tissues will wear out from use due to living longer than they are meant to. Another issue that will complicate the matter even more is that a lot of people will be interested in having a clone as an assistant.
When the technology is available and all the problems and challenges are solved, there will be some people who are willing to pay to be cloned no matter how much it costs. However, there is a lot of research left to do. The idea of creating life when the possibility of mutation exists, will prevent legitimate medical professionals from trying. Even the slightest chance of a mutation is too great for cloning to be considered an option. Cloning will be possible, but too risky, even in the next 100 years.
