The public is torn between protecting lab animals and saving human lives. Paul McKellips, executive vice president of the Foundation for Biomedical Research, spoke at the College of Veterinary Medicine on Monday regarding animal use in research.

Speaking in support of animal research, McKellips said there are numerous benefits that have come from animal experimentation, including the development of treatments for life-threatening diseases.

“Twenty-five years ago, a young lady who gets diagnosed with breast cancer has just gotten a death sentence, and now, she may get cured. We have made such great strides and progress,” McKellips said.

While few would argue against the pursuit of treatments for life-threatening diseases, there are many who are opposed to the methods that involve the use of animals, McKellips said.

“The public is clamoring for new medicines, but we don’t want to talk about how we get there,” McKellips said, pointing out that animal research studies are required for a drug to get FDA approval.

U.S. public polls revealed that public support of animal research has dropped from 64 percent in 2004 to 50 percent in 2010, McKellips said. In response, the foundation is seeking ways to draw attention to the issue of animal research.

“We want the American public to start reading stories about how animals are used in research,” McKellips said, “(so that) people start to understand that those in research embrace animal welfare and take care of the animals.”

Dawn Morin, director of the Agricultural Animal Care and Use Program, described how researchers at the University are held to high standards in regards to the treatment of lab animals.

“Our program is responsible for ensuring the health and well-being of any animals used in research,” Morin said. “Researchers have to assure the committee that pain and distress are minimized and justify why animal use is required.”

The Agricultural Animal Care and Use Program also carries out inspections of animal facilities, ensures that vet care programs are in place and that all personnel are properly trained, Morin said.

Juan Davila, a graduate student who researches the effect of early estrogen exposure on rodents, said the animals they work with are treated properly.

“During procedures, we make sure it’s as humane as possible. In most cases, we use anesthesia, so they don’t feel anything,” Davila said.

In a separate phone conversation, Justin Goodman, PETA representative, said regardless of proper treatment, the use of animals in research is wrong.

“PETA believes that the use of animals in experiments is unethical because animals possess all the characteristics necessary to afford them the same right that we afford humans,” Goodman said. “They feel pain just as humans do and treating them as disposable lab animals isn’t justifiable.”

Goodman said he believes animal research will eventually be replaced with non-animal research methods that are faster, cheaper and more relevant.

“There’s overwhelming evidence that animal experimentation does not reliably predict what will happen in humans,” Goodman said.

According to Goodman, the issue about the use of animals in research boils down to a moral disagreement about similarities between animals and humans.

“They want to acknowledge to a point that these animals are similar enough to us that they make suitable research subjects, but they want to ignore the moral implications of those similarities,” Goodman said.

McKellips agreed with Goodman that there is a disagreement about the value of human versus animal life.

“Speciesism states that any animal is morally equivalent to the three-year-old you just brought back from the emergency room,” McKellips said. “For groups that hold onto that philosophy, there is not much to discuss. If using animals in research is quid pro quo with murder, there’s not much you can say.”