Assisted-suicide advocate uses law to kill himself
One of the first doctors to support Oregon’s controversial assisted-suicide law has used it to end his own life. One of the first doctors to...
US Supreme Court wrestles with posthumous conception
The US Supreme Court grappled this week for the first time with “posthumous conception”.Karen Capato gave birth to twins in 2003 – 18 months after...
UK surrogacy mum wants maternity leave
A British woman who had a child by surrogacy has sued for paid maternity leave. The woman, who remains anonymous, alleging sex and maternity discrimination,...
Stem cell therapy could bolster kidney transplant success
A kidney transplant patient’s own stem cells could replace anti-rejection medications, a new study suggests. A kidney transplant patient’s own stem cells could replace anti-rejection...
Has there been “a complete regulatory collapse” of UK abortions?
"I will do all government paperwork conscientiously" is not a clause in the Hippocratic Oath. Yet it is a significant aspect of an ethical doctor’s...
Is one in five abortion clinics breaking the law in the UK?
Abortion is back on the front pages of British papers with the news that abortion providers are routinely falsifying paperwork. The Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley,...
Yet another Modest Proposal: save the world from climate change by genetically engineering your kids
Modest proposals, in sense given the phrase by the great 18th century satirist Jonathan Swift, are flavour of the month in the bioethics community.Modest proposals,...
Reviving angelology
Last week’s news about an article in the Journal of Medical Ethics endorsing the moral permissibility of infanticide created an enormous amount of controversy in...
Artificial wombs one small step closer
British scientists have developed an artificial womb in which they have grown mouse embryos. A Nottingham University team led by professor of tissue engineering, Kevin...
The Brave New World vs 1984 debate
Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World is a touchstone for much commentary on contemporary bioethical debates, from moral enhancement to genetic engineering to assisted reproduction. Published...
Towards a cure for racism?
Can you cure racism with drugs? Probably not, but a common heart disease medication, propranolol, can affect a person's subconscious attitudes towards race, Oxford University...
An Obama misstep?
Has President Obama made a major political miscalculation at the beginning of an election year? He has announced that his administration will force employer-provided private...