May 29, 2007
The Dutch continue to stun with their fall off a vertical bioethical cliff: In this installment, a television show will soon air in which three ill contestants vie for the right to the kidney of a terminally ill woman. From … Read More
May 29, 2007
The Swiss suicide rate is apparently quite high and a matter of great concern. The Swiss have vowed to fight it, but they have a problem: Opposing “suicide” while legally permitting assisted suicide sends a decidedly mixed message that would … Read More
May 29, 2007
A breakthrough in imaging techniques could enable scientists to watch the moment that cancer first strikes, holding out the prospect of radical new treatments. In a world first, researchers at Dundee University managed to film healthy, live cells within an … Read More
May 29, 2007
A new study published in the medical journal Fertility and Sterility finds that the Plan B drug, known as the morning after pill, can work to cause an abortion of a human being after her life has started. Abortion advocates … Read More
May 29, 2007
Three months ago I took my 7-year-old son through a neurological treatment designed to hack his brain. It’s been 90 days since his treatment ended, and I am happy to report the hack has made a huge difference. Friends and … Read More
May 28, 2007
Our media love the outlaw, as demonstrated in this “Kevorkian time line” that omits information about his victims. They are the truly forgotten ones in this travesty of egotism and sensationalism. Along the Kevorkian front, Rita Marker and I have … Read More
May 28, 2007
The June 2007, 55(6) issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society is now available. Full content is available by subscription only. Articles that may be of interest from the TOC: Mark Lachs, MD, MPH, Ronet Bachman, PhD, Christianna … Read More
May 27, 2007
There is a growing recognition among cancer researchers that the most accurate methods for detecting early-stage cancer will require the development of sensitive assays that can identify simultaneously multiple biomarkers associated with malignant cells. Now, using sets of nanoparticles designed … Read More
May 27, 2007
Study using umbilical cord cells gives hope to future diabetes cure. Stem cells taken from the umbilical cords of newborns can be engineered to produce insulin and may someday be used to treat diabetes, U.S. and British researchers reported on … Read More
May 27, 2007
Not in a flying car, but in biomedical implants, the future is racing toward us. It looks less like The Jetsons and more like Holy Fire—but it’s a near-future that could only be viewed as science fiction just a few … Read More
May 27, 2007
Early-stage research has found that a new gene therapy can nearly eliminate arthritis pain, and significantly reduce long-term damage to the affected joints, according to a study published today in the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism. While the study was done … Read More
May 25, 2007
The May 2007 (19) issue of the Genetics & Public Policy Center is now available. The primary focus of this issue of the newsletter is policy regarding genetic discrimination and the advocacy to approve the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act.
May 25, 2007
Issue 7(5) of The American Journal of Bioethics is now available. (bioethics.net) TOC: Editorial: Judy Illes, Emily R. Murphy, “Chimeras of Nurture” p. 1 Target Articles: Turhan Canli, Susan Brandon, William Casebeer, Phillip J. Crowley, Don Du Rousseau, Henry T. … Read More
May 25, 2007
The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, Summer 2007, 35(s2). Articles are available by subscription only. TOC: Jeffrey P. Kahn & Susan M. Wolf, “Understanding the Role of Genetics in Disability Insurance.” p 5 Susan M. Wolf & Jeffrey P. … Read More
May 25, 2007
Blackwell Publishing has made available a number of free articles from Zygon 42(1) as a promotional of their e-journal service. These articles are usually available by subscription only. TOC: (Free Articles) Ann Milliken Pederson, “South Dakota and Abortion: A Local … Read More
May 25, 2007
I am not happy: But my ire was raised before the ultimate failure of the bill to outlaw futile care theory in Texas. The “good” bill, which would have required hospitals to maintain treatment pending a transfer to another hospital … Read More
May 25, 2007
Pregnant women eventually will be asked to donate umbilical cord blood and other placental fluids when they give birth. (Savannah Now)
May 25, 2007
Stace Owens has no intention of leaving this world when he dies. He plans to stick around for decades or longer, preserved in plastic and displayed in a museum or medical school. (Post Star)
May 25, 2007
A shortage of doctors and nurses in Africa is now one of the biggest obstacles to providing life-saving drugs to AIDS patients, condemning untold numbers to an unnecessary death, a new report says. (USA Today)
May 25, 2007
A gene therapy treatment that helped make cells more sensitive to the body’s own painkillers not only helped ease arthritis pain in mice but also reduced other symptoms, researchers said on Friday. (Reuters)
May 25, 2007
The House Committee on Energy and Commerce has asked Conseco and the Penn Treaty American Corporation, two of the nation’s largest sellers of long-term care insurance, to produce documents showing how the companies market long-term care policies and handle policyholder … Read More
May 25, 2007
The US health system is in a state of crisis and serious politicians, including several presidential candidates, say the time has come to reform it along the lines of the European or Canadian model. (BBC)
May 24, 2007
UK doctors fear public safety could be compromised by the growing interest of world governments in using drugs for law enforcement. A report by the British Medical Association points to the example of the Moscow theatre siege of October 2002 … Read More
May 24, 2007
A new article published in the American Journal of Transplantation examines the dilemmas faced in trying to change kidney transplant policy; addressing the need to balance the benefits of immediate transplants with those to be had from waiting for a … Read More
May 24, 2007
A new technique helps scientists hunt for information thought to be stored in DNA-bound proteins. (Technology Review)
