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OpinionOctober 22, 2006

To the editor: I am appalled by the lack of fortitude from our politicians regard Amendment 2, the embryonic stem-cell initiative. This is a complicated issue that is poorly understood even by health-care professionals. It is a shame proponents of Amendment 2 found it necessary to sneak in the back door by trying to amend our state constitution to allow embryonic stem-cell research. This is a matter that clearly should be taken up by legislators, but obviously it is too hot to handle...

To the editor:

I am appalled by the lack of fortitude from our politicians regard Amendment 2, the embryonic stem-cell initiative. This is a complicated issue that is poorly understood even by health-care professionals. It is a shame proponents of Amendment 2 found it necessary to sneak in the back door by trying to amend our state constitution to allow embryonic stem-cell research. This is a matter that clearly should be taken up by legislators, but obviously it is too hot to handle.

My problem with embryonic stem-cell research revolves mostly around it obvious exploitation of women. The creation of somatic stem-cell embryos through cloning is unethical. This process also would consume large quantities of human eggs, which would require donation from willing females through hyper-stimulation of the ovaries. There is considerable risk involved with hyper-stimulatory drugs. I doubt that there are very many females who would subject themselves to voluntary ovarian hyper-stimulation and egg harvest, because it is a painful process and a potential risk to their lives.

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The amendment's suggestion that women should not be paid for their eggs is grossly misleading, as it allows the purchase of eggs through fertility clinics, creating a middleman for the sale of human products.

There are many reasons not to vote for the amendment. The one that stand out is the exploitation of our female citizens.

As a physician, I strongly encourage you to weigh this situation carefully. I find this initiative immoral and repugnant.

Dr. SCOT G. PRINGLE, Cape Girardeau

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