Ethos-Pathos-Logos
Ethos
Pros:
“We wanted to target a big issue,” Shokuhfar says, explaining that nerve regeneration is a particularly difficult biomedical engineering conundrum. “We are born with all the nerve cells we’ll ever have, and damaged nerves don’t heal very well.” -Tolou Shokuhfar
http://missouricures.org/bioprinting-in-3d-looks-like-candy-could-regenerate-nerve-cells/
Noteworthy expert Tolou Shokuhfar is an assistant professor of mechanical and biomedical engineering at Michigan Tech. Shokuhfar additionally directs the In-Situ Nanomedicine and Nanoelectronics Laboratory. She is currently utilizing 3d bioprinting technology to construct synthesized nerve tissue, of which can potentially assist in the regeneration of damaged nerves for patients with spinal cord injuries.
"We are in the same place heart transplants were in the first few years. They did not work that well (at first). It took some very brave patients' experiences so people today can lead normal lives." -Dr. Stuart Williams
http://www.3dprinterworld.com/article/report-predicts-possible-ban-bioprinting-2016
Dr. Stuart Williams is a bioprinting advocate who is leading a faction of researchers at the Cardiovascular Innovation Institution (CII) in the venture of creating a 3d bioprinter capable of constructing a human heart. The Cardiovascular Innovation Institute is an internationally established research enterprise purported to understand the mechanisms of heart.
Cons:
"What's going to happen, in some respects, is the research going on worldwide is outpacing regulatory agencies ability to keep up. 3D bio-printing facilities with the ability to print human organs and tissue will advance far faster than general understanding and acceptance of the ramifications of this technology." -Pete Basiliere
"These initiatives are well-intentioned, but raise a number of questions that remain unanswered. What happens when complex enhanced organs involving nonhuman cells are made? Who will control the ability to produce them? Who will ensure the quality of the resulting organs?" -Pete Basiliere
http://www.computerworld.com/article/2486998/emerging-technology/bio-printing-human-parts-will-spark-ethical--regulatory-debate.html?page=2
Pete Basiliere is the Director of Research at a market research firm called Gartner. Basiliere released a report predicting that continued research on the topic of bioprinting will spark fierce ethical debates that will ultimately lead to strict legal bans against its development by 2016.
"If the new technology is more expensive [than existing treatments], it likely will not be added to healthcare coverage and therefore will be available only to the elite. This will continue to expand the access divide between the haves and the have nots." -Kirstin Matthews
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/80205.html
Kirstin Matthews is a Fellow in Science and Technology Policy at Rice University's Baker Institute. She is also a lecturer in the Wiess School of Natural Sciences and a lecturer in the Department of Sociology. Matthews focuses her research on ethical and policy issues related to biomedical developments. She specifically studies intellectual property rights for biotechnology, of which include ethical issues related to emerging biomedical technologies, like bioprinting.
Pathos
This inspirational piece of literature by Sherri Topple was written in tribute to Brad Howell, a former army Reservist. On March 13, 2006, 18 year old Howell was tragically killed while operating a security shift at the Halifax Armouries. Prior to this unexpected incident, he had stated that he undoubtedly wished to donate his organs when he was no longer here to house them, for he felt as though they would be put to better use in this manner. I chose this poem because it not only presented the viewpoint of the gracious recipient, but it also explained the heartbreak involved with the donor’s side of the family. With organ donation it is often imperative that one individual suffers for another individual’s gain, which sparks a plethora of ethical debate. Personally, I believe that the evolution of bioprinting could solve this dilemma, for it provides individuals the ability to tailor organs to meet the individualistic needs of any patient. Bioprinting could potentially replace the entire organ donation process, which often presents severe constraints on the quality of life for recipients regardless.
“My Gift”
Dedicated to the memory, life and gifts of Brad Howell
Open your eyes; tell me what do you see?
Will you look at the world the same way as me?
Are you younger or older? Do you realize
The love that I witnessed through these two blue eyes.
Run cross the field; do you race with the team
Or go it alone as you follow your dream?
Do you feel the excitement, the thrill of the chase?
Do you see the same pride on your family’s face?
Take a deep breath; see your chest rising higher
You’re doing it now; no machines and no wires
Will you swim? Will you bike? There’s so much to explore.
All these things you can do now; the choice is all yours.
The heartbeat that thunders inside of your ears
Is music to others, it’s calming their fears
Does it feel very strange, to be beating inside you?
The rhythm of life; now it’s cycling anew.
Tears – oh the tears – both of grief and of joy
Resurrecting one life, while another destroy
Confusion and guilt, as they offer their prayers
One side with great praise; while the other despairs.
My life was important; my life force was strong
All the dreams I was chasing … my wish list was long.
I was loved by my family and loved by my friends.
I know you are, too. Now you’ve more time to spend.
My mother has gifts that I crafted with care;
Painted cards; pasta art; and a lock of my hair
Never once did I sense there could ever be danger;
Now my most precious gifts will live on in a stranger.
I know that my life has not been in vain,
Even though with the end, it has caused others pain.
Your life up to now was uncertain at best
Now it’s your time to shine – put my gifts to the test.
I can’t accept thanks; it would be incidental.
As I once said to mom, “Hey, it’s only a rental.”
Live it well; share your gifts; when life gets hard for you,
Please be strong, and remember, you live for me, too.
-Sherri M. Topple
March 30, 2008
Logos
This table showcases the number of animals utilized for laboratory research in 2013. Bioprinting would assist in the depreciation of this statistic significantly, for rather than testing on animals, researchers could generate tissue to be utilized specifically for laboratory endeavors.
This graph displays the ever-expanding gap between the number of patients waiting for a transplant and the number of transplants performed. Over the past two decades, the gap has widened exponentially and is only expected to enlarge in the future.
This graph displays the rise in both Research and Development costs and Selling, General, and Administrative costs for Organovo, a preeminent company in the bioprinting revolution. A major concern among those skeptical of bioprinting is the expense such elaborate procedures entail. The graph justifies this regard, as the costs showcased have increased immensely within a short period of time.