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Most people believe that experiments on animals are necessary
for medicine and science to progress. This is not the case.
The belief that we must experiment on animals is being challenged
by a growing number of physicians and scientists who are utilizing
many research methods that do not harm or kill animals. Physicians
and scientists also see the negative consequences of using
one species to provide information about another species;
often the results of animal experiments are misleading or
even harmful to humans.
The following biomedical research practices reflect true
progress- producing, accurate, predictive and applicable results.
They offer real, immediate insight toward effectively fighting
human disease.
Rather than hoping that an animal will respond like a human,
in vitro research is conducted in an external, controlled
environment, such as a test tube or a petri dish. Because
most illnesses do their work at a microscopic level, these
experiments make ideal test beds for studying the course of
human disease. Not only are in vitro tests more humane than
killing animals by exposing them to experiments, but they
have been shown to more accurately produce results which correlate
from the laboratory to real life as well.
Toxicity tests using human cell cultures are two to three
times more accurate than tests on rats and mice.
Penicillin and streptomycin are historical examples of in
vitro discovery, and there have been thousands since. Today¹s
in vitro technology enables researchers to receive accurate
information from as many as 100,000 compounds per day.
 Technological
advancements in biological science have forged phenomenal
frontiers, and we have yet to tap one iota of their potential.
The achievements of physicists, chemists, mathematicians,
computer engineers and biotechnical engineers have long since
outpaced the archaic methods of animal experimentation.
Breakthroughs in physics have allowed imaging techniques
such as CAT scans, MRI scans, and PET scans. Our ability to
understand disease processes has been vastly improved through
X-ray crystalography, single molecule spectroscopies, and
nuclear magnetic resonance. Ultrasound, blood-gas analysis
machines, blood chemistry analysis machines, microscopes,
monitoring devices, electrocardiograms, and electroencephalograms
all provide windows into the human body without using animals.
 Chemistry
has contributed greatly to DNA sequencing and gene chips,
as well as drug delivery devices, biocompatible materials,
and separation/ purification methods and many more breakthroughs.
Mathematics and computer science have given us the Fast Fourier
transforms used in spectroscopy and CAT scans, fast sequence
alignment and database methods used in genomics, conformational
search and optimization methods used in protein folding, and
ecological and population models of disease.
 Epidemiology
is the study and control of diseases within a human population.
Epidemiology has linked diet to heart disease, smoking to
lung disease, and identified all known environmental poisons
and occupational diseases. By labeling certain habits or substances
as dangerous, we can eliminate them from our lives and diminish
our chances of illness. Using computers, we can now gather
and analyze human population data at an unprecedented rate.
Unfortunately, animal experimentation often impedes the ready
acceptance of epidemiological evidence. Asbestos, arsenic
and benzene are a few of the products that lingered in the
marketplace despite having been proven hazardous to humans
through epidemiology.
The observation and analysis of a patient¹s condition
has always been an important component of medical research.
Examples of tell-tale evidence unfolding at the bedside are
innumerable: the successful treatment of childhood leukemia,
thyroid disease, our present level of HIV and AIDS therapies,
the discovery of multiple cardiac drugs, and many more.
Though findings from animal experiments invariably differ
from a drug's effects on humans, corporations continue sinking
millions into irrelevant research. Clinical research could
be greatly expanded if funding for animal studies was redirected
to physicians for clinical research.
Virtually every disease has either been discovered or clarified
as a result of autopsy. Autopsies often indicate the presence
of illness missed by physicians, and studies show that physicians
tend to misdiagnose approximately 10 percent of the time.
Due to higher costs, autopsies are not conducted as frequently
as they once were. However, if just one out of five deceased
patients was autopsied, volumes of invaluable information
could be retrieved. Several European countries have already
diverted funds from animal experiments to autopsies.
Post-marketing drug surveillance (PMDS) is a system of reporting
all the effects and side effects of a medication after it
has been released to the public. With this practice in effect,
health professionals could detect and prevent the dangers
of negative drug reactions. In addition, PMDS could also increase
the likelihood of finding new uses for existing drugs.
Unfortunately, PMDS is not mandatory, and physicians infrequently
report side effects to monitoring agencies. Therefore, it
is impossible to compile comprehensive data on a drug¹s
potential for negative reactions. If PMDS was mandatory, we
would gather valuable information about drugs much more quickly.
Getting this information sooner would mean many more people
spared from dangerous side effects, some of which have proven
deadly.
 Genetic
research, in conjunction with epidemiological evidence, reveals
which genes cause humans to be predisposed to hereditary problems
such as birth defects, cancer, and heart disease. By altering
flaws in an individual¹s DNA composition, scientists
are working toward correcting abnormal genetic traits.
Some scientists now study DNA in animals for the supposed
benefit of science, wasting time and money for irrelevant
results. With further exploration, human genetic research
has the potential to eliminate cancer and birth defects before
birth.
Computer and mathematical modeling have recently led to new
treatments for breast cancer, AIDS, high blood pressure, and
aided development of new prosthetics. By mimicking the shape
and structure of molecules known to be therapeutic, scientists
can improve their design to be even more effective. Similarly,
known toxic chemicals can be analyzed to predict toxicity
without resorting to unreliable animal testing.
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Post-Marketing
Drug Surveillance