Scientific breakthroughs: cause or cure of the aging 'problem'.
Could it be that society's construction of what it means to be elderly has created and now fuels the current immortality revolution? Have we defined aging in such a manner that we 'need' technological breakthroughs in order to fight the 'problem' of the soaring geriatric population? This fight may indeed improve quality of life and increase longevity, but while doing so, society must accept that this strategy will result in an ever increasing elderly population, a population that cannot be expected to let beneficient medical technology (comfort or cure oriented) pass them by. Society's medical breakthroughs are creating a population that ethically we cannot turn our backs on.
Monash University, Clayton, Vic., Australia. kbramstedt@mednet.ucla.edu
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D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D018672:Community Health Planning; D006801:Humans; D008136:Longevity; D011788:Quality of Life; D012106:Research