Having a child to save a child!?

LizMarie

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Do you think its right to have a child to save a child!? The situation I'm talking about is a couple that has a child that is sick and needs a transplant, bone marrow or something similar and the parents decided to become pregnant with a genetically engineered child to have similar DNA to save the child that is ill.

I know parents would do anything to save their children but is this ethically right!? I saw a story about it and thought it was strange to say the least.
 

Khrysty

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It depends...if they already wanted a second child, the second child wouldn't be killed or harmed in the process, and actually loved the second one...then I think it's perfectly ethical.
 

Sunrise Reptile

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I know it's not nice to answer a question with a question, but...

Is it ethically sound to sit by and watch a child suffer and eventually die, knowing that there was something you could have done to save their life?

Have a child to save the life of another child? Without hesitation, YES!
 

Shera

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I don't see how it could be considered unethical if the child isn't harmed in the process. Sure having bone marrow extracted isn't fun, but if you had a sick child and another child who was already born, you would do it, and it doesn't harm the child in the long run. If it was to harvest a kidney of something, then I would take issue with it.
 

RampantReptiles

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so what happens if they dont conceive and deliver in time to save the other kids life? That would be sad :(

Good luck to them... the awesome power of todays medical knowledge/technology hard at work.
 

Tony C

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Just the first step =). One day we will be growing organs and wont have to worry about stuff like this.


Liz can I see the article you saw this in?

It would be a lot sooner if we got the churches out of our government and let the scientists work with stem cells...
 

jmlslayer

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My parents would do my friends with the same illness as me would do it too heck my friends Brother gave bone marrow to him for a bone marrow transplant.. my friend didnt make it sadly..

RIP Mario gone but never forgotten my brother!
 

Retribution Reptiles

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I honestly find that you be unethical as a parent. Why would you want to bring a child into the world to be a pin cusion/organ factory. Sure you want to save your child but bringing another child in the world to be a donor is selfish. Sometimes you have to let nature take its course and deal with the pain of the loss just like everyone else.

I don't believe that children should be able to donate anything until they can make an educated decision. Which means to me that doesn't take place until at least 13 years old.
 

LizMarie

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It wasn't an article itself but a story on 20/20 on WE but I've heard of this happening as of lately. The family in the news segment had a 3 sons and one of them had a very rare genetic disorder, some rare anemia that usually lead to death before the age of 13. They tried the treatments, etc and then there doctor told them the best thing they could do was to give the little boy a bone marrow transplant but opted out of having a donor because the survival ratio wasn't very promising and non of his brothers were a very good match. So they decided to wait to years so they could get pregnant during that time. In a lab they checked her eggs and his sperm and tried to get a pair that matched their sons dna and didn't carry the mutated gene that caused the disorder then she was artifically inseminated. 9 months later a little boy was born and that's when they collected cord blood and blood from the placenta. Just over 3oz's of blood and within a few weeks later the boys immune system was irradicated by chemotherapy and then was given the bone marrow transplant.
 

LizMarie

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Some doctors and people have said it to be unethical because they feel as if someone is playing god by picking and choosing what they want the child to have. They said that the process that was used to screen eggs and sperm could used to pick a babies sex, eye color, etc in the future and nothing will be left up to mother nature
 

JordanAng420

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I dunno what to say. I know that as an adopted child, I had a hard time accepting the "why" aspect of the whole situation. And lots of people, especially children, can be pretty ruthless when it comes to personal questions.

I would think that this child, later on in life, would have a hard time accepting and dealing with the fact that he or she was brought into the world for the sole purpose of saving his or her sibling. Now, I can't comment on how much this family loves their children. I'm sure they love them both, and I HOPE equally. Me personally, however, would have some major issues in wondering why I was created in the first place....because it certainly wouldn't seem like it was because they truly WANTED to have me, rather they NEEDED to have me...to use me. I'd have some hostility issues I would think.

Just my 2c.
 

LizMarie

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With not knowing the family personally and all the editing I can't pass a judgment and shouldn't but it didn't seem as if they wanted to have another child bc the father had been "snipped" soon after their soon with the rare disorder was born so they had to surgically remove his sperm.

I guess since I don't have a child so I don't exactly know that feeling of wanting to do anything it takes to save my child.
 

KelliH

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I honestly find that you be unethical as a parent. Why would you want to bring a child into the world to be a pin cusion/organ factory. Sure you want to save your child but bringing another child in the world to be a donor is selfish. Sometimes you have to let nature take its course and deal with the pain of the loss just like everyone else.

I don't believe that children should be able to donate anything until they can make an educated decision. Which means to me that doesn't take place until at least 13 years old.

Maybe if you had a child of your own you would understand.
 

Sunrise Reptile

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I would think that this child, later on in life, would have a hard time accepting and dealing with the fact that he or she was brought into the world for the sole purpose of saving his or her sibling.

Why shouldn't one believe there's equal likelihood that this second child feels proud that it played a role in saving its siblings life? Children aren't born selfish. :main_no:
 

JordanAng420

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Why shouldn't one believe there's equal likelihood that this second child feels proud that it played a role in saving its siblings life? Children aren't born selfish. :main_no:

Well, that's true. Children aren't born selfish at all, and that's not what I was trying to say. This kid might end up being proud as heck for playing such a positive role...

I was just saying that he or she may have some psychological difficulties with the entire situation as well, and may or may not have some problems with it at some point.

I obviously don't have children of my own. But I would do anything for my child, if I had one. My concern is for the kids mental well-being.
 

Barbel

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Retribution Reptiles View Post
I honestly find that you be unethical as a parent. Why would you want to bring a child into the world to be a pin cusion/organ factory. Sure you want to save your child but bringing another child in the world to be a donor is selfish. Sometimes you have to let nature take its course and deal with the pain of the loss just like everyone else.

I don't believe that children should be able to donate anything until they can make an educated decision. Which means to me that doesn't take place until at least 13 years old.

Maybe if you had a child of your own you would understand.

I completely agree. You say you will do this and that for your kids, but until you actually have one you don't really understand it. I would also have another child if it meant saving my child's life. I would do anything for her.

.because it certainly wouldn't seem like it was because they truly WANTED to have me, rather they NEEDED to have me...to use me. I'd have some hostility issues I would think

I think it would depend on how the parents handled the situation. If it were me I would want the child to feel a great sense of pride and feel like that even as an infant they were able to do something wonderful and make a difference in the world. Honestly I think that even if the child wasn't really "wanted" that the parents would be so grateful the baby saved their child's life that they would be thanking him/her the rest of his/her life. Also, I find it hard to imagine that parents that devoted to their child would just push another one aside simply because they didn't want the child for traditional reasons.
 
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