Title |
Netnography and the bioethical analysis of therapeutic tourism blogs for stem cells
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Published in |
Ciência & Saúde Coletiva, October 2016
|
DOI | 10.1590/1413-812320152110.16422016 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Natan Monsores, Cecilia Lopes, Edilnete Maria Bessa Bezerra, Natasha Lunara Silva |
Abstract |
Therapeutic tourism is a recent phenomenon in public health and has had repercussions among people with disabilities. Virtual social networks have enabled people to organize themselves to discover ways and means of seeking unconventional treatments in China. In this context, foreign biotech companies have offered experimental cell treatment therapies. In this work, netnography (conducting ethnographic research online) was conducted on the blogs of 58 people who organized campaigns to carry out treatment in China. In the analysis it was found that the main motivation for mobilization of resources and people in order to submit a disabled child to a treatment with stem cells without scientific proof is the rhetoric of hope promoted by stem cell laboratories. The conclusion drawn is that due to the ethical, legal and health implications, debate on the subject should be broadened in order to protect vulnerable individuals against inadvertent exposure to health risks due to treatments without proven control or rigor. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United States | 1 | 50% |
Mexico | 1 | 50% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 2 | 100% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Unknown | 32 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Master | 5 | 16% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 4 | 13% |
Professor | 2 | 6% |
Student > Bachelor | 2 | 6% |
Other | 2 | 6% |
Other | 6 | 19% |
Unknown | 11 | 34% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Social Sciences | 7 | 22% |
Business, Management and Accounting | 3 | 9% |
Nursing and Health Professions | 3 | 9% |
Medicine and Dentistry | 2 | 6% |
Economics, Econometrics and Finance | 2 | 6% |
Other | 3 | 9% |
Unknown | 12 | 38% |