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Emerging Ethical, Legal and Social Issues Associated with Stem Cell Research & and the Current Role of the Moral Status of the Embryo

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Abstract

Since its early days, stem cell research, particularly human embryonic stem cell research, has been the focus of intense social debate, and the question of the moral status of the embryo has been a central issue in the controversy. Despite this friction, and while it has yet to obtain widespread success in clinical applications, stem cell research remains a great hope for future advances in healthcare. In this paper, we will discuss the results of our systematic literature review in which we examined recent social science, legal and biomedical discourse, as well as Canadian print media discourse, associated with stem cell research in order to assess the role the question of the moral status of the embryo currently plays in these forums, and to identify what other issues are emerging and receiving attention. This analysis will assist with recognizing the issues which are likely to inform future policy and will facilitate forecasting the probable direction of the continually developing social discourse surrounding stem cell research.

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Notes

  1. Legal Periodicals Full Text Database is a bibliographic database containing information from legal periodicals – including law reviews, bar association journals, university publications, yearbooks, institutes, and government publications, covering court decisions, legislation and original scholarship – and books, with international coverage including the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.

  2. The Social Sciences Full Text Database provides access to English-language journals covering the latest concepts, trends, opinions, theories, and methods from both applied and theoretical aspects of the social sciences, with international coverage including publications from the US, Canada, Great Britain, Europe, China, Africa, and other jurisdictions.

  3. Pub Med provides access to approximately 5,000 biomedical journals published in the United States and worldwide in the fields of medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, health care systems, and preclinical sciences, as well as life science journals and biomedical articles.

  4. Our sample included the following publications: Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Globe & Mail, National Post, Ottawa Citizen, The Province (Vancouver), Toronto Star, Vancouver Sun, The Guardian (Charlottetown), The Telegram (St. John’s), The Daily News (Halifax) & The Gazette (Montreal).

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Acknowledgments

This work was completed as part of the Canadian Stem Cell Network funded project, “The Stem Cell Research Environment: Drawing the Evidence and Experience Together”. Additional thanks go to all of the participants of the Lay of the Land workshop for their invaluable comments and advice, and to Erin Nelson and Michael McDonald for their comments on an earlier draft of this paper.

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  1. Health Law Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Amy Zarzeczny & Timothy Caulfield

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  1. Amy Zarzeczny
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  2. Timothy Caulfield
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Correspondence to Timothy Caulfield.

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Zarzeczny, A., Caulfield, T. Emerging Ethical, Legal and Social Issues Associated with Stem Cell Research & and the Current Role of the Moral Status of the Embryo. Stem Cell Rev and Rep 5, 96–101 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12015-009-9062-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12015-009-9062-4

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