The secondary debate where Jessica is concerned...

· The treatment of Jessica Santillan represents an excellent example of a debate on modern medicine and evolution. Jessica was diagnosed with restrictive cardiomyopathy, which I think is better described as a condition or a symptom, than an actual disease. Causes are stated as being unknown, but there are numerous diseases/conditions that lead to the heart muscle being stiff, and therefore ultimately ineffective (this is an abbreviated layperson’s description by the way). There are many causes that lead to the restrictive cardiomyopathy, however most of the time the cause remains unknown. In my opinion this means it is the result of genetic factors. Genetic diseases such as Gaucher’s and Fabry’s can lead to the condition. The mortality rate for these conditions is quite high, without extraordinary treatment (i.e. heart transplant). The debate is whether or not we are perpetuating certain diseases/conditions in our gene pool by extending extraordinary treatment to those with these diseases, as by doing so we are influencing the “survival of the fittest” by helping individuals to live, procreate, and pass on genetic defects who otherwise would not survive to reproduce? It is wonderful that we have made such incredible scientific advances that allow people like my diabetic mother to live longer and fuller than she would have 100 years ago, but what is the cost? Take the case of an individual with a fatal peanut allergy. If allowed to experience the world normally without taking extraordinary measures to protect this individual from peanuts that individual would almost certainly die before passing along their peanut allergy. Are the fittest individuals surviving in the world today? Does it even matter that one has genetic defects if they can be treated? To what lengths should we go to save someone who nature has marked as unfit? How does treatment/non-treatment affect our ability to evolve into a more fit biological state? And finally what is unfit? And who decides who is fit and who isn’t?