THE European Parliament鈥檚 vote to stop stem cells being harvested from embryos and ban therapeutic cloning has spread dismay among many biomedical researchers (see 鈥淯S wolves left out in the cold鈥�). With luck, that decision will be rejected by the Council of Ministers later this year.
Most disturbing are the extreme views dominating this debate. On one side, the parliament鈥檚 decision appears to have been led by 鈥減ro-life鈥� MEPs who will never be persuaded that medical research on a human embryo is justified, not even if the embryo would otherwise be discarded. Their assertion that anyone sanctioning this research will have blood on their hands is born of personal religious conviction and should not be imposed on others.
On the other side is a disturbing trend for researchers to hit back by exaggerating the potential of their work 鈥� that thousands will be condemned to premature death if research on stem cells is banned. In reality, any 鈥渕iracle cures鈥� are a long way down the road.
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There is a sensible middle ground. A limited amount of stem-cell work should be allowed within strict limits, so long as biomedical researchers can show that their work has the potential to be of great benefit and cannot be done with animals. Those researchers need to keep their claims realistic. Just because their opponents use dubious moral arguments is no excuse to do the same.