March 6, 2006
We recently added a section on the right side of this page about our new project, The Bioethics Podcast. It is a collaboration between bioethics.com and The Center For Bioethics and Human Dignity, and is sort of a radio show … Read More
March 6, 2006
(via New York Times) Lawyers have concluded their arguments in the suit over the stem cell institute established in California by Proposition 71. In contrast to what was expected, very few witnesses were called on either side. The judge is … Read More
March 3, 2006
(via Kansas City Star) The state of Missouri is in the midst of a battle over cloning, and there is a growing movement to place the “Missouri Stem Cell and Cures Initiative” on the ballot there. The skirmish has erupted … Read More
March 1, 2006
Vatican Summit Looks at Selecting Embryos (AP) 16 Women File Lawsuit Against Boston Lab (AP) Internet ‘Aids Drugs Trafficking’ (BBC)
March 1, 2006
Tests, Choices, and Hypothetical “Bright Lines” Read More
February 28, 2006
One of the things that hinders progress in addressing the challenge of 45 million uninsured in our country is the possibility of making things worse rather than better. Currently, the charge is that the new Medicare prescription drug program has … Read More
February 28, 2006
On Tuesdays, The New York Times runs the “Cases” column in which a physician shares a bit of their personal experience. The column is insightful for those of us who are not physicians but have a keen interest in doctor-patient … Read More
February 28, 2006
Medicare Red Tape Snares Drugs (USA Today) US States to Recoup Costs of Medicare Drug Glitches (Reuters) Doctors Take Note: Even the Whiners Sometimes Get Sick (New York Times) Confusing Studies Don’t Alter Health Advice (AP) Stigma Still Shadows Psychiatric … Read More
February 27, 2006
California Stem Cell Institute Trial Starts Today (via Los Angeles Times) Three groups (People’s Advocate, National Tax Limitation Foundation, California Family Bioethics Council) filed two lawsuits, which have been combined into a single trial, asserting that the lack of direct … Read More
February 24, 2006
FDA Balancing Act (via The Wall Street Journal) The FDA will soon debate the question “Should a promising drug that carries a known and deadly side effect still be allowed on the market?” The drug in question, Tysabri, a drug … Read More
February 23, 2006
Fake Findings Used to Secure $16M Grant (via Pittsburg Tribune Review) University of Pittsburgh scientist Gerald Schatten received a $16.1 million, 5-year grant from the National Institutes of Health based largely on the now discredited South Korean cloning research. The … Read More
February 22, 2006
Transparency Vital in Clinical Trials (Wall Street Journal [subscription required]) Pharmaceutical company Northfield Laboratories is currently running a clinical trial of a blood substitute called PlyHeme. The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) raises questions about the fact that an earlier … Read More
February 20, 2006
Type 1 Diabetes Research (via BBC) A research team at the University of Minnesota has cured type I diabetes in monkeys by transplanting islet cells from pigs and combating rejection with a combination of drugs. The team is hoping to … Read More
February 17, 2006
Stem Cell Showdown in the Show Me State Missouri is currently in the midst of a debate over whether the state government should fund cloning and embryonic stem cell research. Yesterday, at the Missouri Press Association Day at the state … Read More
February 16, 2006
HSA A survey to be released today reveals that CEOs view increasing healthcare costs as an impediment to expanding their workforces. Many employers are asking employees to shoulder more of the cost, and a majority is experimenting with initiatives like … Read More
February 15, 2006
Clinical Trials of Non-Embryonic Stem Cells (Washington Times) Johns Hopkins is currently running a trial to see if mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow can regenerate a damaged heart.” While the results will not be known for several months, the … Read More
February 14, 2006
Egg Donation for Cloning to Expand in Britain (BBC, The Times) Currently in the UK egg donation for research purposes is restricted to women who are already undergoing medical treatment. This is not providing enough eggs for the scientists who … Read More
February 13, 2006
U.S. Senator Jim Talent (R-MO) has removed his name from a bipartisan bill (Brownback, R-KS and Landrieu, D-LA) to ban all forms of human cloning. Talent is emphasizing alternative techniques for obtaining stem cells (altered nuclear transfer or ANT), and … Read More
February 13, 2006
60 Minutes last night aired a report on the surplus embryo situation in the United States. Currently, there are approximately 400,000 frozen embryos in fertility clinics around the country. As the report identified, the couples to whom these embryos belong … Read More
February 10, 2006
The National Institutes of Health and pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Affymetrix are joining forces to form the Genetic Association Information Network. The goal is to identify key combinations of genetic variations that might indicate whether a person is at an … Read More
February 9, 2006
Surprising, but not shocking news from The Scientist: With the Torino Winter Olympics due to kick off on Friday (February 10), anti-doping authorities are still hoping that the spectre of gene doping — the misuse of gene therapy to boost … Read More
January 18, 2006
But almost 3,000 people in the UK were hastened to their death by their doctor. There were 936 voluntary euthanasia deaths (i.e., patients requested euthanasia), 1,930 “non-voluntary” euthanasia deaths and 0 assisted suicides. The balance of the deaths was attributed … Read More
January 17, 2006
The Church of Scotland has announced its opposition to the destruction of embryos in research and medicine. This includes embryonic stem cell research, preimplantation sex-selection, and preimplantation genetic diagnosis. For some, the use of and subsequent destruction of embryos to … Read More
January 17, 2006
Wesley J. Smith writing at National Review Online Where’s the Media Mea Culpa? But enough about Hwang. The other story here is the media’s attempt to shore up public perception of embryonic-stem-cell research and therapeutic cloning even in the midst … Read More
January 13, 2006
Kathryn Jean Lopez of National Review says that the fact that Hwang didn’t actually accomplish anything gives us “a second chance to preserve the dignity of human life.” This is actually good news. Cloning — even under frequently used euphemisms: … Read More
