January 9, 2007
In the run-up to Christmas, the UK government published a White Paper titled Review of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act. It attracted limited press attention at the time. However, one proposal in it – to ban the creation of … Read More
January 9, 2007
Another day, another stem cell breakthrough. The announcement of an “ethical” source of stem cells from the fluid that surrounds the developing foetus in the womb triggered an avalanche of headlines this week because it offered a new way to … Read More
January 8, 2007
Humanism in the Age of “Enhancement:” A Critical Response to Body Worlds A Community Forum Hosted by IIT’s Institute on Biotechnology and the Human Future January 24, 2007 5:30 p.m. Chicago-Kent College of Law Auditorium 565 W. Adams Street Chicago … Read More
January 8, 2007
For all the bluster over Iraq, taxes and budgets, the first direct confrontation between the Republican president and the new Democratic Congress may come on an entirely different subject that has gotten relatively little attention recently: stem-cell research. That reality … Read More
January 8, 2007
I am surprised and pleased: The story about the versatility of amniotic fluid stem cells was major front page news in today’s San Francisco Chronicle. The story, byline Carl Hall, also had one of the fairest presentations of the stem … Read More
January 8, 2007
Supporters of embryonic stem-cell research were heartened when the new Democratic majority in the U.S. House of Representatives decided to include a push for federal funding for the research in their “first 100 hours” agenda rolled out this week in … Read More
January 8, 2007
A transplant surgeon has warned against selling body parts, after a report suggested organs are for sale online. The Sun newspaper claims people are selling organs such as kidneys, parts of their liver, and the corneas from their eyes, online … Read More
January 8, 2007
UK scientists hoping to use animal eggs in human embryonic stem (ES) cell research face a ban on their work, if proposals outlined in a recent White Paper become law. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), which regulates all … Read More
January 8, 2007
Cyprus will be taking a leading role at an important pan-European conference on bio-ethics and human rights in Berlin in the Spring, during a series of parallel events organised by the Council of Europe and the incoming German EU Presidency. … Read More
January 8, 2007
What kind of doctors would agree to intentionally shorten and sterilize a disabled six-year-old girl to make it easier for her parents to take care of her? The question has had message boards steaming for days, but the answers are … Read More
January 8, 2007
US scientists say they have made germ-resistant skin that could one day save the lives of severe burns victims. The genetically modified skin cells, when added to cultured skin substitutes, killed more bacteria than normal skin in the lab. (BBC)
January 8, 2007
The UK’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has, for the first time, amended a licence for stem cell research to be carried out, which allows women to donate eggs without needing the donation to be linked to ongoing in … Read More
January 8, 2007
While you can retrieve cash from your bank account anywhere in the world and maintain your bank records online, Americans seldom maintain their health records by using software, hardware and Internet connections. (USA Today)
January 8, 2007
Imagine a baby that was made-to-order, with eye color, hair color and other characteristics predetermined. Thanks to a controversial new embryo bank, these “designer babies,” as critics describe them, are no longer science fiction. They’re reality, and they’re fueling a … Read More
January 8, 2007
Stem cell researchers reacted with enthusiasm and reservations to a report that scientists have found stem cells in amniotic fluid, a discovery that would allow them to sidestep the controversy over destroying embryos for research. (AP)
January 8, 2007
The dying are being forced to cling to intolerable existences, long past the stage of mercy and reason, while more and more seriously disabled children are surviving, only to be denied even basic care. Right-to-life campaigners, though scrupulously kind to … Read More
January 7, 2007
A piece in the Sunday Times, claims that Geron Corporation will be starting human trials using ES cells to treat spinal cord injury in 2008: The Geron Corporation, based in America, is seeking approval for the first clinical trial using … Read More
January 7, 2007
Amniotic fluid continues to show great potential for stem cell research. So do every other by product of live births–placenta, umbilical cord blood, amniotic membrane, even cord tissue. As my good friend Richard Doerflinger put it, “Each new birth not … Read More
January 7, 2007
A reader sends this story along: Johns Hopkins has completed a 5-way kidney swap, in which five people gave their organs to unrelated people. But it wasn’t pure altruism. It was a barter deal. In return for giving a kidney … Read More
January 6, 2007
Nikki Bacharach, the daughter of Burt Bacharach and Angie Dickenson, has committed suicide. She had a form of autism, that apparently had left her very depressed. The statement from the family was that she “peacefully committed suicide to escape the … Read More
January 5, 2007
The Telegraph has the story of a single mother of a 14-year-old with cerebral palsy who wants her daughter to have a hysterectomy. She is fully supportive of Ashley’s parents, who appear to have set off the debate that they … Read More
January 5, 2007
Okay: Now I am getting a touch of the willies about this situation. Here is the Web site of Ashley’s parents. (HT:Bernhardt Varenius) Ashley’s breasts buds were removed to prevent future discomfort. Her appendix was removed as a prophylactic against … Read More
January 5, 2007
No, this can’t be true. Don’t they know that a frozen embryo isn’t really human? The story should say, “Birth Imminent for Bunch of Cells Saved From Katrina.”
January 5, 2007
The media have been increasingly interested in the story of Ashley, the disabled girl given hormones and surgeries to keep her from maturing. This includes overseas and in Canada and so I was asked by the Discovery Institute to do … Read More
January 5, 2007
The eugenics string got kicked off the regular Corner dialogue, but I bring it to you here, if you are interested. Stuttaford calls Leon Kass a “crank” because he (Kass) claims that one of the things in life that focuses … Read More
