November 21, 2006
Stem Cells, Holy Spirit Go Hand in Hand at SBU
Science and religion have been judged by some education experts as incompatible subjects that can’t be taught in the same classroom. (News-Leader)
Monthly Archives: November 2006
November 21, 2006
PBS Frontline Focuses on Growing Concerns of the Elderly
Bing Crosby set the standard for dying well. At 74, he dropped dead of a heart attack after doing what he most loved in life — playing 18 holes of golf — on a gorgeous course in Spain. (Boston Globe)
November 21, 2006
Cancer Hurts Caregivers, Too
Frances Hornback rushed her husband to the emergency room in June after he began coughing up blood. It was only then, 18 months after her husband first began having respiratory problems, that he was diagnosed with lung cancer. About a … Read More
November 21, 2006
Doctors Say How We Taste Affects Health
Woe to those who have a cold on Thursday. If you can’t smell the roasting turkey, it just won’t taste as good. And if you think the brussels sprouts are bitter, well, blame how many taste buds you were born … Read More
November 20, 2006
Pleasantly Surprising News Out of the UK
Well, this is nice. A UK judge has refused to permit an unnamed patient diagnosed with persistent vegetative state to be dehydrated to death at the request of her family who believe it would be better for her to “die … Read More
November 20, 2006
“The Evolution of Technologyâ€
Lately I’ve been watching videos from the TED (Technology Entertainment Design) conferences, which—as you might imagine—cover a wide variety of people and topics. Of particular interest here are a pair of talks, each billed as addressing “the evolution of technology.†… Read More
November 20, 2006
UK: Last Meal with the Man Who Chose Death
Dave Richards had an appointment with death. It was of his own choosing, but he could not help thinking about the life he was leaving behind. “I have had a particularly good run for my money,†he mused as he … Read More
November 20, 2006
Annan Warns of “Catastrophic” Biotech Danger
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned that potential dangers from the rapidly growing biotechnology industry were increasing exponentially and urged creating global safeguards. (Reuters)
November 20, 2006
Kennedy Sets Sights on Child Health Care
The soon-to-be chairman of the Senate health panel said yesterday his ultimate goal is to have the government provide health care coverage for all Americans. (Washington Times)
November 20, 2006
India: Banking on the Cord of Life
When Tanya Sharma was expecting her second child early this year, she chanced upon an advertisement on cord blood banking. A cousin of hers had recently lost her child to thalessemia and doctors had said transplant of stem cells could … Read More
November 20, 2006
In Competitive Marketplace, Asian Egg Donors in Demand
For more than 18 fruitless months, Regina and Dennis Joyner searched for an Asian woman willing to donate her eggs. They were on the waiting list at two Washington area fertility clinics. They placed an online classified ad, but the … Read More
November 20, 2006
Couples Pay Big Bucks To Choose Sex Of Baby In U.S
Do you want to choose the sex of your baby? Many couples do and are paying big bucks to get what they want. NBC4’s Dr. Bruce Hensel said this is causing a great deal of controversy With some people saying … Read More
November 20, 2006
NZ Stem Cell Patient Dies
Willie Terpstra from Rotorua was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2004. In April last year she became the first New Zealander known to undergo the experimental treatment, which involves transplanting cells from aborted foetuses into the brain. (People’s Daily)
November 20, 2006
International Bioethics session opens Monday in UNESCO
The 13th session of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO) International Bioethics Committee (IBC) will kick-off here [Paris] on November 20 to discuss a number of ongoing issues, including those of consent, social responsibility and health. UNESCO … Read More
November 20, 2006
Op-Ed: Thinking in Tongues—What can we learn from a babbling brain?
Last week, the New York Times reported that neuroscientists had gotten a look, for the first time, at the brains of devout Christians engaged in speaking in tongues. The test subjects believe that God takes possession of their minds and … Read More
November 20, 2006
Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire/ Your Nose is Longer Than a Telephone Wire
Regenerative Medicine: Pathways to Cure This propaganda video, produced by the Alliance for Medical Cures, is so filled with lies and junk biology that it has to be denigrated as anti-science. I intend to write about this at greater length, … Read More
November 20, 2006
“It Can’t Happen Here.”
Perhaps the most dangerous sentence ever uttered.
November 19, 2006
UN Head Urges World to Regulate Biotechnology–Yadda, Yadda, Yadda
Excuse my cynicism, but UN Head Kofi Annan’s urging that the international community regulate biotechnology seems like so much hot air to me. Of course, he is right: We should regulate biotechnology. But based on how the “international community” does … Read More
November 18, 2006
Benefit of Doubt Increasingly Shifting Toward Death in UK
The Lord Chancellor has warned UK doctors that if they violate advance directives refusing treatment, they could go to jail. Now, I certainly believe it is important to respect a patient’s desires in this regard; but jail? There are an … Read More
November 18, 2006
Beware of Overseas Stem Cell Quackery
A New Zealand woman who went to China to get fetal tissue therapies for her ALS (motor neuron disease) has died. Allegedly, there was an early improvement and then she slipped back into the disease. This reminds me of the … Read More
November 18, 2006
China Admits Taking Executed Prisoners’ Organs
After years of denial, China has acknowledged that most of the human organs used in transplants here are taken from executed prisoners and that many of the recipients are foreigners who pay hefty sums to avoid a long wait. (Los … Read More
November 17, 2006
The Bioethics Podcast Episode 032
Episode 032 of The Bioethics Podcast features an overview of end of life decision making by Dennis Sullivan, M.D., M.A. (ethics). Listen Read Discuss Subscribe
November 17, 2006
My Bionic Foot
While covering the Iraq war, BBC producer Stuart Hughes lost his leg. His new prosthetic foot is so advanced, it may even allow amputee soldiers back into battle. (BBC)
November 17, 2006
Nanotechnology Holds Promise Against Brain Cancer
Tiny “nanoparticles” can be loaded with high concentrations of drugs to kill brain cancer, U.S. researchers report. Researchers at the University of Michigan (U-M) Comprehensive Cancer Center incorporated the drug Photofrin into nanoparticles (about one-billionth of a meter in size) … Read More
November 17, 2006
Orlando Hospital Teams With Stem Cell Blood Bank
New mothers in Orlando could play a role in helping thousands of people with leukemia, sickle cell diseases and other medical problems. (WESH)
