Ethical Challenges in Biomedical Engineering Research and Practice

Biomedical engineering has transformed modern medicine to the point that we can transplant or even replace human organs with devices or lab grown tissue, perform surgery from a distance, and even provide devices that help those without limbs perform in the Olympics. We’re now on the verge of more incredible, perhaps even fearful possibilities, inviting new challenges to our moral values and perhaps existential view of what it means to be human. Should we do certain things just because we can? How far should we go with human enhancement? CRISPER can change our genetic make-up. Should we grow organs in animals for harvesting? How about transplanting human tissue into animals for research? What if that involves brain tissue that alters the conscious experience of research animals? What about growing neurons that could achieve a level of sentience? Should we find technology to extend human life? If we do, should only those who can pay for it get it? While past issues concerning conflict of interest, allocation of scarce resources for standard care, clinical and animal research, and research misconduct remain as concerns, these are enhanced by our new possibilities. I will discuss many of these topics with examples from real world situations.