The term unborn here refers to every human being from the moment of fertilization to the birth. I prefer to use the term unborn, for it explicitly includes all unborn humans at all prenatal stages in comparison to the born humans. It speaks of commonality of humans and explains the difference only in the status of being born and not-yet born or unborn. The unborn includes the fertilized egg, zygote, blastocyst, embryo and foetus – the different terms – that biology uses to distinguish the various stages of development of the embryo until birth. The general public understands the term unborn with an image of a tiny baby with arms and legs inside the womb. Biologically an embryo refers to a living entity that comes into existence as a result of fertilization of human sperm and egg. This fertilization process takes place in the womb or in vitro fertilization process. The fertilized egg can develop outside the womb only for a certain period and is incapable of developing into a full human outside the uterus.
Whether in vitro fertilization (1VF), pre-implantation diagnosis, pre-natal diagnosis, research with embryonic stem cells, therapeutic/reproductive cloning or abortion, it all deals with the central question about the moral and legal status of the unbom. The modem medical technologies have a scientific value in alleviating human suffering definitely but not without negative effects. In these technologies, the unbom humans can be used as mere means to probably some good ends. But the questions arise: Do good ends justify the means? Are embryos humans or biomaterials?