Glannon - Genetic Enhancement

Genetic Treatment vs. Genetic Enhancement

• Definitions:

  • Gene Therapy: Intervention aimed at treating diseases and restoring functions to an adequate baseline.

  • Genetic Enhancement: Intervention aimed at improving already adequate functions and capacities.

• Goal of Genetic Enhancement:

  • Augment normal functions to make them better.

  • Falls outside the traditional aims of medicine which focus on disease treatment and maintaining equality of opportunity.

• Debate on Treatment vs. Enhancement:

  • LeRoy Walters and Julie Gage Palmer's View:

    • Some enhancements (like immunizations) are considered acceptable as they help prevent diseases by enhancing the immune system.

    • Immunizations: Aim to boost existing immune responses to combat viruses, which is more about maintaining function than enhancing it.

  • Distinction Reaffirmed:

    • Genetic interventions to prevent diseases maintain normal function rather than enhance it.

Limits of Enhancement

• Potential Risks:

  • Enhancements could lead to excessive responses, e.g., autoimmune diseases caused by overly sensitive immune systems.

  • Just as a bisphosphonate enhances bone density, it serves more as treatment rather than enhancement since it prevents fragility in bones.

• Cases for Evaluation:

  • Growth hormone for short children:

    • Treatment vs Enhancement depends on whether shortness severely limits opportunities for achievement.

  • Athlete example: Raising hemoglobin for better performance could be enhancement, unless it serves remedial purposes when levels are severely low.

Moral Implications of Genetic Enhancement

• Unfair Advantages:

  • Genetic enhancements can create disparities in competitive traits (beauty, intelligence) based on wealth.

  • Those who can afford enhancements would have significant advantages in careers and life opportunities, leading to ethical concerns of fairness.

• Discussion on Competitive Goods:

  • Competitive traits are continuous and allow those with enhancements to be comparatively better off, which blurs the lines on treatment vs enhancement.

  • Emphasis should be on basic goods enabling adequate functioning rather than comparative advantages.

• Four Major Ethical Concerns:

  1. Unfair Advantages: Only the wealthy have access to enhancements.

  2. Self-Defeating Access: Universal access may not raise living standards for some due to cognitive impairments from enhancements.

  3. Equality Implications: Enhancements above the norm could undermine perceived fundamental equality, risking social stability.

  4. Autonomy Threat: Genetic changes influencing virtues may undermine individual agency and moral responsibility.

Conclusion on Genetic Enhancement

• Moral Objections:

  • Enhancing noncompetitive virtues may conflict with individual autonomy as they take away personal agency in moral development.

  • Fostering autonomy through personal reflection and choice is more valuable than implanted virtues.

  • Overall, equitable access to enhancement technologies could pose considerable risks, warranting a cautious approach to the future of genetic enhancement practices.