Animal research is of great importance in the Medical arena. The debate on whether it is ethical for humans to use animals in their research has existed for the past two centuries. Despite the developments, animal research has resulted in concerns about the welfare of animals used in testing. As the debate continues, how the medical team would achieve beneficial research outcomes without using animals is the main problem. There seems to be no other alternative for the scientist as animals are the available option. Animals can be used in medical research as long as researchers protect and reduce the suffering of animals used.
Animal research has its advantages to the welfare of the people. There have been tremendous positive outcomes from the use of animals to ensure people's health. An example is the invention of penicillin. The animal used in the experiment for this drug is the mice. The drug is beneficial even today as it plays a significant role in fighting bacteria. The mice were also used to develop polio vaccine; this led to the Nobel Prize in 1945 (Orlans 1993 1). More inventions have been made, including the use of sheep and cows, to understand the pathogenesis of tuberculosis. Over the years, animals' medical research has helped the medical system fight against deadly diseases to humans. After analyzing animal research benefits on humans, it is best if animals continue to be used in research and testing.
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The use of animal research also benefits its species. Research and test in the medical arena may be necessary for the welfare of animals as well. In this case, the question of whether it is right or wrong to use animals for their benefit tends to weaken. Medical research and testing aim to produce positive results. If an animal can save many of its species, why is it a big issue? The fact remains that animals are the best beings to be used for the sake of knowledge gain. The ways in which they are used are the primary cause of alarm. Most research is conducted on animals because it would be a completely different debate if humans were to be used for experimentation.
Disease control over the years has been made possible by the use of animals in medical research. For example the invention of vaccines, which are very important in today’s lives. Therefore, it is ethical to use animals in the right manner for the world's safety at large. The role of vaccines in humans and animals' lives is to ensure they are protected from deadly illnesses. The more there is an emergence of fatal diseases, the medical experts have no choice but to protect the people ( National Research Council, 1988) . There is enough reason for medical researchers to utilize their knowledge through animal research. As it has proved beneficial for the past two centuries, it should continue and benefit human beings and animals.
Animals should be handled respectfully during medical research. They should not be exposed to pain and suffering since it is not ethical. "The question is not, can they reason? Nor can they talk? But can they suffer" ( Sunstein, C 2003) According to a philosopher named Bentham It is inhumane to subject animals to pain and suffering for whatever reason? He explored the evil of subjecting animals to pain in the name of development and discovery. He argued that medical researchers should ensure that the animals are not made to suffer as they do not deserve to die painfully. Additionally, evolutional biology has contributed to the ethical debate on the use of animals in medical research. The argument explored is that humans have evolved just like many other organisms. However, the advantage that humans have over other organisms is that they have a larger brain. The human brain has intellectual abilities that enable them to understand moral consequences that animals do not have. (Paul E, 2001, 1) Therefore, humans have rights well known to them and have the power to utilize and use knowledge. They are consequently superior to animals and thus can use the animals to gain more knowledge and improve their health and lives collectively. However, Frey argues that animal use in medical research should not be based on the argument that humans are superior to animals. “There will be humans who either lack the characteristics that one identifies or exhibit it to a lesser degree than do many animals."(Sustein 2003, 387) He argues that infants are not used in experimentation, yet they do not talk or proof cognitive ability. Through his discussion, we understand that to measure the quality of a human's life is through their experiment content. Animals, on the other end, are experiential, and therefore just like humans, they have a quality of life. His research does not oppose animals' use in medical research, but he insists that the benefits that animal research brings to the world are the only genuine reason they are used.
The future of the medical industry is highly connected to research and experiments. Technology has advanced the methods of testing in laboratories. Therefore the possibility for continuous use of animals is very high, especially with the emergence of new diseases. Recently Germany and the Netherlands have made changes in their medical research. The two countries have banned the medical use of mice in experiments. The department of Agriculture in the United States has also petitioned the same agenda. Animal protective organizations continue to push governments to eradicate animals' use, which is taking place in different parts of the world. Medical researchers have invented the use of monoclonal antibodies. This development is one of the methods that researchers are trying to reduce animals' use. Although it may not be applicable in all tests, the use of monoclonal antibodies has reduced the use of animals in antibody production tools. These antibodies have successfully led to the development of drugs essential to fight two types of deadly cancer which are Breast cancer and Lymphoma (Paul E, 2001). However, as much as some governments are rebuking use of animals’ developments in research is on the rise. For example, The use of the 'Mighty Mouse, ' which is a genetically altered animal that has been designed to fight diseases like human beings, is expected to bring much success in monoclonal-antibody research.
In conclusion, animal use in medical research has very many advantages to the welfare of humans and animals themselves. The eradication of animals in medical research laboratories is difficult or almost impossible. Therefore, the only way to ensure a balance in debate about animals is to emphasize on ethical standards. Strategies to make sure animals do not suffer in pain during testing and experimentation is essential. All people should embrace the inventions and developments that animals have brought to the health care sector. Moreover, it is the responsibility of every individual to appreciate efforts that the medical teams put into designing ways to maintain health for the benefit of all.
References
National Research Council, 1988. Use of laboratory animals in biomedical and behavioral research . National Academies Press.
Orlans, F.B., 1993. In the name of science: Issues in responsible animal experimentation . Oxford University Press.
Paul, E.F. and Paul, J. eds., 2001. Why animal experimentation matters: The use of animals in medical research (Vol. 2). Transaction Publishers
Sunstein, C.R., 2003. The rights of animals. The University of Chicago Law Review , 70 (1), pp.387-401
