What is IVF? (In Vitro Fertilization) Should we use the extra embryos for research?

“In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a technique in which egg cells are fertilized outside the human womb.  IVF is a major treatment in infertility where other methods of achieving conception have failed.”  On the face of it, it seems to be a real good thing, that an IVF clinic gives couples the chance to conceive a child when they are having problems bringing their own child into the world.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IVF    

http://www.answers.com/topic/in-vitro-fertilisation

“The process involves hormonally controlling the ovulatory process, removing ova (eggs) from the woman's ovaries and letting sperm fertilize them in a fluid medium. The fertilized egg (zygote) is then transferred to the patient's uterus with the intent to establish a successful pregnancy. "In vitro" is Latin for "in glass", referring to the test tubes; however neither glass nor test tubes are used, and the term is used generically for laboratory procedures. Babies that are the result of IVF have been called "test tube babies".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IVF

http://www.answers.com/topic/in-vitro-fertilization

Let us understand that obviously an egg is not a human nor is a male sperm.  So obviously an egg is not an embryo and there really is no such thing as a fertilized egg, because once fertilization occurs, the egg no longer exists. A fertilized egg should only be speaking of the action or event of an egg and sperm coming together, rather than the identity of a zygote or embryo which are very different.

 If one is inclined to use the term, fertilized egg, it would be inaccurate. It’s kind of like saying that someone is “kind of pregnant”.  Either you are or you are not.  I get the impression that some people like to use the term, ‘fertilized egg’ for a conceived human, to diminish the humanity of the child, implying that the zygote or embryo is more egg than human.

It is the combining of egg and sperm that produces a tiny human, known as a zygote. At this point you have a human being who has begun a journey of development as their life has begun.

Where do the extra human eggs and embryos for cloning and embryonic stem cell research come from?

Many scientists desire to use the extra eggs and embryonic children from IVF clinics.  Many IVF clinics take more eggs and make many more embryos than parent’s need, even when they have the ability to do otherwise. The embryonic stem cell, (ESCR) industry has put a great deal of pressure on IVF clinics to produce more eggs and embryos for their research.  Certainly in this situation there is a great deal of money to be made, so one must be cautious to say that the stem cell industry is strictly humanitarian in its desire to use more embryos for obtaining stem cells.  There a great deal of money to be made in patenting ESCR, because anything genetically modified can become intellectual property. One of the down sides of investing in Adults Stem Cells is that one cannot make patents on full grown adults, because their own genetic material is their own.

http://www.genetics-and-society.org/events/20041209_postelection/newman.html

What about the Embryonic Children kept in Cold Storage?

What is there to be done with the embryonic children in IVF clinics that are kept in cold storage?  Some have suggested that these unwanted children should just be used for stem cell research ignoring the fact that these children could possibly be saved by a society that reconsiders that these little ones could be used by those who are willing to have them implanted in their wombs to adopt them. It has been estimated that there are at least 400,000 of these little ones who are being kept in cold storage, trapped in their frozen world.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A27495-2003May7&notFound=true

Here are some links for this kind of compassionate service

http://www.nightlight.org/snowflakeslanding.asp

http://www.embryoadoption.org/contactus.asp

Children Rescued from IVF Clinics

I have met some of these children that were rescued from the cold storage. And some of these children even met the President of the U.S. Not all children brought out of cold storage will survive, but should they not be at least given a chance to live their own lives?  Even I were to be able to save only 1 child out of three who were drowning, does that diminish my responsibility to save the one?  Some will say that these are merely “potential lives”, but when a born child is accidentally killed, don’t we say that “He had so much more life to live”? 

Consider this line of reasoning: Babies are potential toddlers, just as toddlers are potential teens and eventually adults.  In like fashion, an argument could be made that the vast majority of humanity are only potential humans, who until they reach our supposed or perceived level of income, intelligence or status, they are merely “potential humans”. Most would be uncomfortable with that kind of elitist world, so why do we impose that on the embryo, a stage of development that we were in at one time?

So why should taxpayers want to invest in failed science when the successful benefit of Adult stem cells and umbilical cord stem cells have been used since the 1990’s? It is baffling that good money is being wasted this way on embryonic stem cell research. Even if ESCR was successful would that make it any less unethical? When I spoke at a State Senate hearing regarding ESCR, I told them in no uncertain terms that we would not want to benefit from this type of research even if our lives depended on it.

Have you ever considered that scientists are harvesting parts from embryos to benefit others human beings. Does not this show that the scientists are admitting by their actions that these little ones are human because we need their human parts?