There is no use denying the fact that humanity continues its development constantly trying to find some new remedies which can make the life of people easier and secure them from the threats of the world. Resting on these facts, it is possible to say that scientific progress can be taken as one of the main remedies which can help people and society to continue their development as it can promote creation of new tools and issues which will be able to improve the life of a person. Due to this process humanity is able to fly, swim and fight against different diseases. Though, it is not enough as there is still no treatment for some illnesses. However, the latest researches connected with stem cells provide new possibilities for scientists as these cells have a great number of advantages. Thus, their influence on a person is not totally investigated. Under these conditions, stem cells can be taken as a mysterious remedy which can either heal a person or finally kill him/her.
Healthy influence of stem cells on the human body is the theme of a great number of different investigations. Such interest is caused by universal character of these cells. They have unique structure which can promote usage of these cells in different cases starting from simple injuries and ending with diseases like cancer. Great number of experiments proved the ability of stem cells to from new body tissues (Lui, Vilchez, & Gedaly, 2015). This unique feature can be taken as the absolute advantage of this sort of cells. They can be used in different areas of medicine in order to heal people and guarantee their happy living. Scientists state the fact that in future, this remedy can lead to the appearance of a great number of medicines which efficiency will be much higher than the efficiency of existing ones. That is why investigations of these cells are needed.
Moreover, scientists underline unique character of embryonic stem cells, stressing the fact that their usage in medicine can lead to revolutionary results. They claim that that this kind of stem cells has an outstanding potential for development. Stem cells take part in creation of every organ in the human body (Stem Cell Basics, n.d.). However, as against adult stem cells, embryonic ones potentially can form any cell from hundreds of different cells which exist in the human body. It is possible to give an example to illustrate the difference better. Blood stem cells can produce only blood cells. Yet, embryonic stem cells can form either blood cell or great number of other cells. It becomes obvious that such potential impresses scientists and great number of researches and experiments are conducted in order to understand peculiarities of functioning of these cells and mechanisms of formation of different tissues with the intention to use these mechanisms in practice.
Still, there are also certain problems connected with the usage of this sort of cells. First of all, it should be said that the effect which they make on a person is not investigated completely. It is rather difficult to predict further development of stem cells in the body of a human being. Their great ability for development and evolving can lead to some unexpected results. There are some cases when a patient, who was transplanted these cells, died. With this in mind, it is possible to say that weak theoretical basis creates some barrier for wide usage of this sort of cells.
Additionally, some ethic dilemma, connected with the usage of embryonic stem cells, exists. The fact is that these cells can be obtained only from the embryo. That is why, the question of legibility and moral side of this action appears. Religion strictly forbids this practice and it can be very serious reason for people to stand against the usage of stem cells in medicine. For someone it can seem unethical to use parts of a human body in order to cure some other people.
It is quite obvious that these reasons are rather important, however, they should not prevent people from using stem cells in medicine. Further investigation of the issue can lead to new discoveries and help to solve problems connected with the indeterminism of results. Indeed, discovery of induced pluripotent stem cells can help to solve ethical dilemma connected with the usage of embryonic stem cells in medicine (Al-Anazi, 2015).
With this in mind, having analyzed the main advantages and disadvantages of the usage of stem cells in medicine, it is possible to make a certain conclusion. It should be said that there is a great number of perspectives connected with this new remedy, though there are still some limitations which exist because of ethical side of the usage of embryonic stem cells and indeterminism of possible results. However, further investigations of the issue can help to solve these problems and promote further development of this area of medicine. Stem cells are very important discovery which can change the image of medicine totally.
Reference List
Al-Anazi, K. (2015). Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells and Their Future Therapeutic Applications in Hematology Journal of Stem Cell Research & Therapy,5(258), n. pag. doi: 10.4172/2157-7633.1000258
Lui, S., Vilchez, V., & Gedaly, R. (2015) Liver Cancer Stem Cells: A New Paradigm for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Treatment. Journal of Stem Cell Research & Therapy, 5 (5), 1 – 7, doi: 10.4172/2157-7633.1000283
Stem Cell Basics. (n.d.). National Institutes of Health.