Sanctity of Life Sunday

Today is the day the Christian community sets aside to contemplate the sanctity of human life and what we can do to defend the powerless whose human dignity is being violated. The conversation includes beginning-of-life issues such as abortion (including gendercide), embryonic stem cell research, and in vitro fertilization. It includes nuclear bombs, use of arms, active euthanasia, war, the disposability of girls in China, and widows who are expected to commit suicide upon the deaths of their husbands. 

Moving beyond sanctity of life itself, we also consider that"human dignity" is grounded in Genesis 1. That has ramificationsfor...

Sex trafficking

Refusal of hydrating tubes

Human slavery

Rape culture

POW standards

Immigration policy

Homelessness

Hunger

Poverty

Proverbs 31:8–9 (NET)

Open your mouth on behalf of those unable to speak,

for the legal rights of all the dying.

Open your mouth, judge in righteousness,

and plead the cause of the poor and needy. 

Bioethics in the News

U.S. measles cases in 2013 may be most in 17 years

The CDC says this year may be the worst for measles in more than a decade. Health officials blame people who refuse to vaccinate their children. (CNN)

Selling the Fantasy of Fertility 

Two former fertility patients tackle the hype related to IVF advertising. The success rates still aren't all that great, even after years of finessing process. (Op-ed, New York TImes) 

Childhood death rates down by 50% since 1990

Still, a staggering 6.6 million children under the age of 5 still died last year, according to UNICEF. A report said nearly half of these were in five countries: Nigeria, Congo, India, Pakistan and China. (Associated Press)

Sex-selection abortions cause of missing girls in India

The U.S. created sex-selection abortions as a population-control strategy, and the result is millions of missing girls in India, China and elsewhere, says a Congressional human rights panel. (Business Standard)

Most doctors oppose physician-assisted suicide, poll finds
A New England Journal of Medicine poll questioned readers about a hypothetical case of physician-assisted suicide and received more than 2,000 valid responses. Roughly two-thirds worldwide, —including 67 percent of replies from the U.S., —said they disapprove of physician-assisted suicide. (Medical Xpress)

Faulty stem cell regulation may contribute to cognitive deficits associated with Down syndrome
The learning and physical disabilities that affect people with Down syndrome may be due at least in part to defective stem cell regulation throughout the body, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.  (Medical Xpress)

Stem cells: Living adult tissue transformed back into embryo state

The living tissue inside an animal has been regressed back into an embryonic state for the first time, Spanish researchers say. But the journal Nature showed the technique led to tumors in mice. (BBC)

Physicians push off-label ketamine as rapid depression treatment, part 1
Ketamine, the anesthetic and illegal club drug, is now being repurposed as the first rapid-acting antidepressant drug and has been lauded as possibly the biggest advance in the treatment of depression in 50 years. (Scientific American)

Stem-cell bank reach for fountain of youth
Got $63,000 to spare? Maybe you want to freeze a backup of your adult self for potential use decades later. (Vancouver Sun)

Nanotechnology solutions to combat superbugs
The emergence of superbugs has made it imperative to search for novel methods, which can combat the microbial resistance. Thus, application of nanotechnology in pharmaceuticals and microbiology is gaining importance to prevent the catastrophic consequences of antibiotic resistance.  (Nanowerk)

The next step for end-of-life care
The hourly revenue generated by a physician discussing plans for care is $87. That same physician, when conducting a procedure such as a colonoscopy or a cataract extraction, will make more than $300 per hour. Renewed support for a bill that would better compensate U.S. doctors for providing end-of-life counseling highlights the value of these conversations; for patients, physicians, and the healthcare system. (The Atlantic)

Researchers uncover genetic cause of childhood leukemia
A genetic link specific to risk of childhood leukemia has now been identified, according to a team at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and other institutions. The discovery was reported online today in the journal Nature Genetics. (Medical Xpress)

Abortion: A decision that doesn’t serve the public interest 

A decision not to prosecute two abortion doctors who offered gender-specific terminations raises a host of questions about sexism. (The Telegraph)

Bioethics News This Week

The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity reportsthese news stories for the week:

Studies cast doubt on cancer drug as Alzheimer’streatment
Four independent research groups report that they failed to fullyreplicate the striking results published in a journal last year supporting thehypothesis that Bexarotene, a cancer drug, has potential to treat Alzheimer’s disease.  (Scientific American)

California puts tentative price on health policiesunder new law
California announced Thursday that 13 insurers hadbeen chosen to sell policies through the insurance marketplace— orexchange. (New York Times)

Mom technically dead, gives birth. 
Three-month-oldElayna Nigrelli has redefined what it means to be a miracle baby. She was bornwhile her mother was technically dead. The mom was later revived, and now bothmother and child are fine. (CNN)

A medical first: Doctors save Ohio boy by‘laser-printing’ an airway tube so he can breathe
Soundslike something out of speculative fiction, huh? Doctors have apparently usedplastic particles and a 3-D laser printer to create an airway splint to savethe life of a baby boy who used to stop breathing nearly every day. It’s thelatest advance from the booming field of regenerative medicine, making bodyparts in the lab. (AP)

Stem-cell cloner acknowledges errors ingroundbreaking paper
A blockbuster paper that reported the creation ofhuman stem cell lines via cloning has come under fire. An anonymous onlinecommenter found four problems in the paper, which was published online 15 Mayin the journal Cell. (Nature)



Stem-cell treatment restores sightto blind man
 An experimental stem-cell treatment has restored the sight ofa man blinded by the degeneration of his retinal cells. The man, who is takingpart in a trial examining the safety of using human embryonic stem cells(hESCs) to reverse two common causes of blindness, can now see well enough tobe allowed to drive. (New Scientist)

Vermont becomes third US state to legalize assistedsuicide
The Democratic Governor of Vermont signed into law a bill thatlawmakers adopted last week. Vermont follows Oregon and Washington inlegalizing assisted suicide. (AFP)

South America contraception up to 79%, middleAfrica 19%
The poorest countries in the world lag behinddeveloping countries in meeting the demand for modern contraception, U.S. researcherssay. (UPI)

Human Embryos: Not CAN We But Should We?

USA Today's Dan Vergano reports that the Oregon Health and Science University has cloned human embryos. Why? For stem cell biology. Private funding made this possible, as the US government under President George W. Bush prohibited the use of taxpayers' dollars for such experimentation. You can read more about this sobering moment in our ethical history by going here.

Bioethics in the News

The Center for Bioethics and HumanDignity found these stories of interest in the news this week: 

It's National Public Health Week(NPHW). Since 1995, the U.S. has observed NPHW as a time torecognize the contributions of public health and to highlight issues importantto improving our nation (NPHW). 

Researchers diagnose genetic diseasewithout biopsy. Reproductive Biomedicine Online just published a study in which researchers from Italy and theUK sought to diagnose genetic disease in embryonic DNA without a biopsy. Byextracting fluid from human embryos at the blastocyst stage, they found thatthe fluid contains DNA from the embryo (News-Medical.net).

Belgium tracks trends in end-of-lifedecision-making. According to the Journal ofClinical Oncology, in 1998–2007 Belgium, euthanasia was legal andpalliative care, intensified. This led to an increase in end-of-life decisionsand fewer life-ending acts without patients' explicit requests (Medical Xpress).

Ready for IVF via powderedeggs? Women wanting to delay havingchildren may soon—I kid you not—have their eggs dried into a powder they cankeep at home till needed (Telegraph). 

How about a stem-cell facelift? The stem-cell face-lift starts with liposuction to harvest fatfrom a place that has extra—such as the stomach or thighs—that docs can laterinject into a place that needs more, such as the hollows of the cheeks oraround the eyes. So where, exactly, do stem cells come into play? That'sthe $10,000 question, since that’s about how much people pay for the procedure(New York Times).

Gap widens over how to governabortion. States are becoming increasinglypolarized over abortion, as some legislatures pass ever-tighter restrictions onthe procedure while others consider stronger legal protections for it (The Wall Street Journal).

Gene therapy offers hope for treatingsensory disorders. Imagine being unable to see a lovedone's face. Or to listen to your favorite song. Or to smell chocolate. Now genetherapy holds out hope for treating blindness disorders, with –many tests in late-stage trials. And consequently, researchers areexpanding their gaze to focus on all manner of sensory diseases (The Scientist).

About that Oklahoma dentist with unsanitarypractices... Health inspectors say they foundrusty instruments used on patients with infectious diseases and a pattern ofunsanitary practices that put thousands at risk for hepatitis and HIV (CBS News). Ew-w.  

A new vaccine design may help with HIV. A team of scientists has unveiled a new technique for avaccine design that could be particularly useful against HIV and otherfast-changing viruses (Nanowerk).

iPod, iPad, iGenes? If you consider creepy the personalized ads on Facebook statusupdates, Gmail content and online browsing, just wait till the era ofgenetics-based advertising hits (Wired UK).

Sunday: This just in:
In vitro fertilization linked to increased risk of blood clots during pregnancy. A study published in the British Medical Journal calls for increased vigilance for pulmonary embolism and to consider the use of anti-blood-clotting drugs during pregnancy for women planning to undergo IVF.

Stem cells, end-of-life, and predispositions to violence

It’s been quite a week in the field of medical ethics. Take a look atthese articles gathered by the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity:

A federalappeals court upheld a lower court’s ruling that dismissed a lawsuit claiming NIHfunding for research on human embryonic stem cells violates a law banningfederal funds for research that harms or destroys human embryos. (ScienceInsider)

Britain’s HighCourt on Thursday rejected an attempt by a man wanting to overturn thecountry’s euthanasia law. (Businessweek)

The family of aMuslim man left in an apparently vegetative state after a heart attack fiveweeks ago caused severe brain damage have begun an appeal to ensure he will begiven life-saving treatment, against the advice of clinicians, if his conditionworsens. (Guardian)

An article explores whether post-market drug trials need more ethics. (Scientific American)

Many U.S.organizations recruiting egg donors online don’t adhere to ethical guidelines.  (Fox News)

A Pennsylvaniawoman whose autistic adult son was not recommended for a heart transplant wantsto bring more attention to the decision-making process so that those withailments or disabilities are not passed over without careful consideration. (Washington Post)

A federalappeals court reaffirmed the right of Myriad Genetics to patent two geneslinked to breast and ovarian cancer. (NY Times)

Judges wholearned that a convicted assailant was genetically predisposed to violenceimposed lighter sentences in a hypothetical case than they otherwise would have. (NY Times)

Bioethics in the News

Stem Cell Research: Soon “stemcell shielding” may protect the body from the consequences of chemotherapy. (BBC News)

Contraception: A new study finds that IUDs are the best, most reliableemergency contraceptive for women. (ABC News)

End of Life: Argentina’s Senate has okayed a “dignified death” law to givethe terminally ill and their families more control over end-of-life decisions.(BBC News)

End of Life: An analysis of medical data suggests that kidney patients aresubject to more intensive medical care in their last month of life than arepatients with cancer or heart failure.  (American Medical News)

Organ donation:  A British lab is growing spare body parts, suggesting organ donation maysomeday be a thing of the past. (Daily Mail)

Overstated evidence: A review of databases found that most clinical trials for cancer, heart disease, and mental healthare too small to offer adequate medical evidence. (New York Daily News)

Coerced abortion: A woman in China asserts she wasdragged from her home and forced to have an abortion.  (CNN)

Is This Cool, Or What?

Dozens of people who were blinded or otherwise suffered severe eye damage when they were splashed with caustic chemicals have had their sight restored with transplants of their own stem cells, a stunning success for the burgeoning cell-therapy field, Italian researchers reported last week. (Washington Post)

Bioethics in the News

The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity sends out a news update every Friday. They find the most interesting headlines for the week that relate to bioethics and distribute. I’ve included below a few of this week’s choices with my comments.

Virus-free technique enables scientists to easily make stem cells pluripotent
Tiny circles of DNA are the key to a new and easier way to transform stem cells from human fat into induced pluripotent stem cells for use in regenerative medicine, say scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine. [I willingly offer my fat cells to science. But I suspect there’s a long line ahead of me.]

Ethics debate over blood from newborn safety tests
A critical safety net for babies - that heelprick of blood taken from every newborn - is facing an ethics attack. After those tiny blood spots are tested for a list of devastating diseases, some states are storing them for years. Scientists consider the leftover samples a treasure, using them for medical studies.

Medicines not working? There’s an app for that
Drugmakers are starting to get into bed with information technology companies as they struggle to prove the value of their medicines to governments and insurers. (Reuters)

Stem cell alternatives show early aging abnormalities
A first head-to-head comparison of human embryonic stem cells with ones grown from skin cells, reported Thursday by biologists, revealed early aging and other abnormalities in the less-controversial alternatives. (USA TODAY) [Interesting. Normally it’s been the other way around. I’ll be watching this one.]

Mental Illness Diagnostic Manual Rewritten
The first draft of the new psychiatric manual [set for finalization in 2013] makes major changes in how a wide range of mental illnesses will be diagnosed.

Bioethics in the News

Today the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity sent this list of recent news stories relating to bioethics:

‘Ethical' stem-cell work advances
Several Massachusetts firms are forging ahead with ambitious stem-cell research plans, circumventing the heated debate over embryonic research by using other, less-controversial methods. (Washington Times)

27 more hESC lines head for OK
Twenty-seven human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines are ethically derived and should be approved for use in research funded by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), a committee advising the NIH director recommended today (December 4). These findings come just two days after the approval of the first 13 lines earlier this week. (The Scientist)

Researchers launch phase II trial of stem cells and acute heart attack
The second phase of a clinical trial testing a new stem-cell-based therapy on injured heart muscle has been launched by researchers at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. It is the only study site in the Texas Medical Center. (ScienceDaily)

Would you choose your child's gender?
Genetic screening techniques that allow parents to choose their children's gender are now more accurate than ever and are becoming increasingly mainstream, but experts are divided over whether the technology should be used in this way. (CNN) [I can see doing this pre-conception if one gender is more likely to carry a genetic disorder known to be in a family's gene pool. But I get nervous about sexual discrimination.]

Is it right to pay women for their eggs?
The fertility watchdog is to look at offering more generous compensation to egg and sperm donors as a means of tackling the severe shortage of supplies for those desperate for a baby. (BBC)

Scientists find way to block fearful memories
U.S. researchers have found a drug-free way to block fearful memories, opening up the possibility of new treatment approaches for problems such as post traumatic stress disorder, they reported on Wednesday. (Reuters) [What about blocking memories of a bad relationship? Would you do it? What if you fell in love with the same jerk a second time because you didn't/couldn't learn from experience?]

Genetic Research Spurs Fight Over Patents Tied to the Body
The mapping of the human genome has created enticing possibilities for the early detection of grave diseases. Genetic research, however, has run headlong into a tricky legal issue: Should human genes ever be the subject of patent protection? (Wall Street Journal) [Sure, as long as the One who designed and made those genes gets all the money.]

Wrong surgeries a product of poor communication
Mix-ups both inside and outside the operating room lead to procedures performed on the incorrect patient or wrong body part, a new study says. (American Medical News)

The Silent Scream: Misdiagnosis in Disorders of Consciousness
The widely publicized case of Rom Houben, a Belgian man who was inaccurately diagnosed as being in a vegetative state for more than two decades, highlights the serious problem of misdiagnosis in patients with disorders of consciousness. (Bioethics Forum)

U Nebraska Considers Tighter Stem Cell Rules

Here's a new twist: The University of Nebraska is weighing whether to set tighter limits on stem cell research than those allowed by the government. If so, they would be the first such institution. You can read the story, which appeared in this morning's New York Times, by going here.

Big Stem Cell News

The top story in this morning's New York Times has this headline: Biologists Make Skin Cells Work Like Stem Cells. The new technique, when adapted to stem cells, sidesteps ethical concerns, as it has the advantages of using embryonic cells without destroying a human embryo to harvest them. The technique is said to be relatively easy, and repairing the body with its own cells is certainly superior to surgery or medication.

This is great news. Yet I seriously doubt anyone pursuing research that destroys human embryos will do an about-face. Does anyone even remember this 2005 announcement?