Lethal Judgments: Assisted Suicide and American Law (Landmark Law Cases & American Society)

I have started a new book titled Lethal Judgments: Assisted Suicide and American Law (Landmark Law Cases & American Society). This book is centered on one of the most hotly debated medical questions of the day, euthanasia. Euthanasia is the practice of assisted suicide, generally in the case of extreme suffering and little to no chance of recovery. Do people have the right to let themselves die? Where is the line drawn between this ‘assisted suicide’ and murder? These were the questions answered by the plaintiffs and the defendants as they argued before the United States Supreme Court. This book is essentially an overview of two landmark cases, Washington v. Glucksberg and Quill v. Vacco in which the Supreme Court ruled that Americans do not, in fact, have a constitutional right to assisted suicide. This issue is at the center of medical ethics issues in our country and deserves at least a small nod in my paper on it if not more. The book seems promising and I have yet to decide exactly how much information I will incorporate into my argument. This also brings up what kind of argument I will be making. I want my thesis to be larger than just the one issue of euthanasia, I am seeking some overarching rule (or as close to it as I can get) about where to draw the line between science and ethics. Any suggestions would be very appreciated.

Doctors From Hell: The Horrific Account of Nazi Experiments on Humans

         The second book I have been reading for my senior paper is entitled Doctors from Hell: The Horrific Account of Nazi Experiments on Humans and is centered around some of the atrocities that occurred by Nazi scientists upon innocent Jews, homosexuals, and political opponents. It paints a repugnant and very real portrait of science at its absolute worst. Admittedly, the book can be hard to read at times, but it has a very real message about the indiscriminate slaughter of countless innocents. I had started this book believing that my senior paper would focus on the ethical aspect of science in the modern world. This obviously is one of the most relevant examples that would fit nicely into that type of paper. I am not sure if I will pursue a more scientific route, a route which this book would not particularly fit in with as many of the Nazi experiments had no scientific basis for their research as well as no hypothesis. For example, it was common to sew twins’ skin together to see if they could coordinate as Siamese twins or strike children with hammers to see how much punishment they could withstand before falling into unconsciousness. Suffice to say that if I decide to go the ethical route this book would help me form a strong argument, whereas scientifically it would prove less powerful but remaining useful.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

      I have been reading an incredibly interesting book that I may tie to my senior paper called The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. This book is centered around a poor woman, Henrietta Lacks, who falls victim to a deadly case of cervical cancer. Her doctor kept a culture of her cancer cells without her consent which, after Henrietta’s death, he discovered to have an amazing trait, immortality. Well a type of immortality, the cells would never stop reproducing given sufficient food. These HeLa cells have proven to have a remarkable effect on cancer research and indeed all medical research. HeLa cells have an active version of telomerase during cell division, which prevents the incremental shortening of telomers that is implicated in aging and eventual cell death. In this way, HeLa cells circumvent the Hayflick Limit, which is the limited number of cell divisions that most normal cells can later undergo before becoming senescent.

            I find this to be a very interesting topic that could relate to a science centered senior paper. I had not originally planned this to be related to the paper, but it has inspired a newfound interest in cancer and medical research and how it is so closely related to HeLa cells. Alternatively, I could base my paper around the ethical implications of the Henrietta Lacks story that brings up important ‘do the ends justify to means?’ questions. Is such research and scientific research worth violating a patients privacy rights? Do the cells belong to Henrietta’s family? Should they be compensated for the significant use of these cells? These are all critical questions I could base my senior paper around.