Deliberately Selecting Embryos With a Disability

645 Words3 Pages
Should Parents be allowed to deliberately select embryos with a disability via the use of pre-implantation diagnosis? Using a technique known as pre-implantation diagnosis (PGD), specialists can select an embryo with preferred characteristics and dispose of the leftover embryos appropriately. This technique is usually used by those who have known genetic disorders in their family, but what if the parents want a child that has a disability? Is it illegal, is it unethical or is it just not thought of? In most cases it is the choice of the parents and we should respect their decision to raise them in their own way, but there is still a lot of controversy on the topic. But how does one define a disability? In the dictionary, a disability is defined as restricted capability to perform particular activities; some or all of the tasks of daily life. In this essay, the legality and ethics of using PGD as a tool to deliberately select an imperfect embryo as well as past cases of selecting an imperfect embryo will be further discussed. The legality of PGD differs from country to country, and state to state. A bill in 2008 in the United Kingdom states that “Persons or embryos that are known to have a gene, chromosome … any other serious medical condition, must not be preferred to those that are not known to have such an abnormality.” In other words, a healthy embryo must be chosen, regardless of the couple’s choice or wish. In Australia PGD is legal, but only to test for serious genetic disorders. If a couple wanted to choose an imperfect embryo, they would have to travel to a country where it was legal to do so. An American survey conducted in 2006 asked 415 clinics to participate. They received 190 responds where 137 clinics provided PGD, most commonly for detecting genetic defects. While three percent said that they provided the treatment to help families create
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