Collaboration between Human and Veterinary Research and Medical Experts Could Provide a Balanced Discussion on the...

Animal use in biomedical research continues to present ethical issues regarding justification, care, and welfare. There are differing viewpoints for the continued use of animals in research, testing, and training, and the public can easily search for viewpoints that support a single perspective but rarely are provided with a balanced discussion. An issue of the American Medical Association Journal of Ethics (September 2024, vol. 26, no. 9) exemplifies this problem by providing many views opposing the continued use of animals in research without allowing or providing input from those in the laboratory animal science profession. As a result, many of the views represented in the journal misrepresent important considerations that currently exist when considering the ethical use of animals in research. If a more diverse set of experts, including those with knowledge of laboratory animal medicine, governance, application of the 3Rs, and nonanimal alternatives, were invited into the discussion, we believe that a more accurate perspective of this issue could have been presented. Such diverse viewpoints would have fostered a better atmosphere that more accurately reflects the current reality of how animal use in research is considered by IACUCs. A better understanding of differing perspectives, and with further opportunity for respectful dialogue, could more effectively move this issue forward.