Abstract
It is often assumed that there is broad public support for strong life extension research (i.e. research aimed at the dramatic extension of human life beyond the current maximum), and that there would be a near universal interest in using any life extending technologies that this research may produce. In this paper we report the opinions of researchers in ageing on the controversial promise of life extension, and compare these views. This paper describes the professional attitudes, personal interest and concerns expressed by Australian and international researchers in ageing (n = 14) as expressed during semi-structured, in-depth interviews. Researchers held varying opinions about the possibility of significantly extending human life. Some saw a limit to the extension of human life, while others did not. Some felt that research into the fundamental ageing process was a priority; others did not. Researchers tended to weigh up the potential risks and benefits of life extension with most expressing a personal interest in life extension that was contingent on the technology providing a good quality of life. Some participants were not interested in the prospect of life extension for personal reasons, because they felt the potential risks outweighed the potential benefits, or because life extension raised issues of justice and equity.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Beaubien G (1994) Why get old? Chicago Tribune (Tempo section), October 20:1, 13
de Grey ADNJ (2004a) Report on the open discussion on the future of life extension research. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1019:552–553. doi:10.1196/annals.1297.102
de Grey ADNJ (2004b) Biogerontologists’ duty to discuss timescales publicly. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1019:542–545. doi:10.1196/annals.1297.100
de Grey ADNJ, Baynes JW, Berd D, Heward CB, Pawelec G, Stock G (2002) Is human aging still mysterious enough to be left only to scientists? Bioessays 24:667–676. doi:10.1002/bies.10113
Gerontology Research Group (2007) http://www.grg.org/. Cited 17 Aug 2007
Harris J (2004) Immortal ethics. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1019:527–534. doi:10.1196/annals.1297.098
Holden C (2002) The quest to reverse time’s toll. Science 295:1032–1033. doi:10.1126/science.295.5557.1032
Juengst ET, Binstock RH, Mehlman M, Post SG, Whitehouse P (2003) Biogerontology, “Anti-aging medicine”, and the challenges of human enhancement. Hastings Cent Rep 33:21–30. doi:10.2307/3528377
Kadlec A, Arumi AM (2005) The science of aging gracefully: scientists and the public talk about aging research. A report by Public Agenda for The Alliance for Aging Research, New York; The American Federation for Aging Research, Washington
Kirkwood T (1999) Time of our lives: the science of human aging. Oxford University Press, New York
Le Bourg E (2000) Gerontologists and the media in a time of gerontology expansion. Biogerontology 1:89–92
Lucke JC, Ryan B, Hall W (2006) What does the community think about lifespan extension technologies? The need for an empirical base for ethical and policy debates. Australas J Ageing 25:180–184. doi:10.1111/j.1741-6612.2006.00173.x
Moody HR (2001/2002) Who’s afraid of life extension? Generations 25:33–37
Mykytyn CE (2006a) Anti-aging medicine: a patient/practitioner movement to redefine aging. Soc Sci Med 62:643–653. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2005.06.021
Mykytyn CE (2006b) Contentious terminology and complicated cartography of anti-aging medicine. Biogerontology 7:279–285. doi:10.1007/s10522-006-9016-z
Olshansky SJ, Hayflick L, Carnes BA (2002) No truth to the fountain of youth. Sci Am 286:92–95
Partridge B, Hall W (2007) The search for Methuselah: should we endeavour to extend human life expectancy? EMBO Rep 8:888–891. doi:10.1038/sj.embor.7401069
President’s Council on Bioethics (2003) Beyond therapy: biotechnology and the pursuit of happiness. Regan Books, New York
Richel T (2003) Will human life expectancy quadruple in the next hundred years? Sixty gerontologists say public debate on life extension is necessary. J Anti Aging Med 6:309–314. doi:10.1089/109454503323028902
Underwood M, Bartlett H, Hall W (2007) Community attitudes to the regulation of life extension. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1114:288–299. doi:10.1196/annals.1396.033
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by an Australian Research Council Discovery grant (Project ID: DP0663668). The authors would like to thank the reviewers for their very helpful feedback on earlier versions of this paper.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Underwood, M., Bartlett, H.P. & Hall, W.D. Professional and personal attitudes of researchers in ageing towards life extension. Biogerontology 10, 73–81 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10522-008-9149-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10522-008-9149-3