This Week — CBHD Consultant on Neuroethics Dr. William P. Cheshire, Jr., continues with the next installment in his Grey Matters series with the conclusion of an essay entitled "In the Twilight of Aging, a Twinkle of Hope."

Part 1
Part 2

Also — We will be away at Our Extending Life Conference, so there will be no weekly email for March 7, 2008.

Quote of the Week —

"Is it so incredulous that a family had the 'audacity of hope' to believe its government would care about one profoundly disabled woman?" It is a shame that Senator Obama, who claims to embody 'hope,' is crushing it for the families of people with profound disabilities."

— Robert Schindler, Terri Schiavo's father, responds to Sen. Barack Obama, who said for the second time this year, that he regretted supporting federal legislation aimed at saving the life of Terri Schiavo, in "Obama Crushes 'Audacity of Hope' for Disabled Americans and Their Families," Press Release,  February 27, 2008.

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Medical Professionals Conference: Balancing Faith, Family and Practice
April 10-12, 2008
A Focus on the Family Event
Tel: 800/ 232-6459, or download Conference Brochure

Ethical Challenges in Surgical Innovation
May 8-9, 2008
InterContinental Hotel & Bank of America Conference Center
Cleveland, OH
Tel: 216/ 932-3448

5th International Symposium of the Definition of Death Network
May 20-23, 2008
Plaza America Convention Center
Varadero Beach, Cuba

Emerging Issues in Embryo Donation and Adoption
May 29-31, 2008
Marriot Crystal Gateway
Arlington, Virginia

‘Bioethics’ Journal calls for killing disabled newborns
The article, entitled “Ending the Life of a Newborn”, penned by a pair of bioethicists - Hilde Lindemann and Marian Verkerk - ostensibly sets out to clarify eight separate “misunderstandings” about The Groningen Protocol. In the process, the pair defies initial expectations by boldly and unapologetically pointing out that the protocol is in truth much more extreme than most of its critics believe it to be; the authors, however, argue that its extremity is in fact its true strength, the true evidence of its ethical nature. (Catholic Online)

Op-Ed: Wanted: Someone to Play God
I understand why no politician wants to get between a childless couple and the doctors who offer an answer to their prayers. This is the longing that burns and scars so deeply that we don’t know how to talk about it and so privately that we don’t want to try. But as medicine redraws the map of what’s possible when it comes to making children, we all have an interest in asking how far we should be allowed to go. (TIME)

Monday, February 25, 2008

Filipino kidneys for sale
Selling of body organs is against the law but this practice is thriving in the country. Why? Humans need to survive. Persons suffering from end-stage renal diseases need a kidney transplant to become healthy again. The lack of access to renal care and the high cost of dialysis increase the demand for kidney donors. On the other hand, the starving poor need money to buy food, clothing and other basic commodities. (UPI Asia)

S KOREAN SCIENTISTS TRANSFORM STEM CELLS INTO NERVE TISSUE
South Korean scientists on Monday said they have successfully used nano and bio technologies to grow nerve, muscle and liver tissues from stem cells. (Therapeutics Daily)

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

‘Silicon womb’ to begin fertility trials
Trials of a “silicon womb” that holds test-tube embryos inside the womb to expose them to more natural conditions will shortly begin in the UK. Researchers say the new device may produce better quality embryos and reduce the need to harvest so many eggs from infertile women. (New Scientist)

Adult Stem Cells Help Those With Immune Disorders, Heart Disease
Treatment with adult stem cells harvested from blood or bone marrow may benefit some patients with certain kinds of cardiovascular disorders and autoimmune diseases, a new U.S. analysis shows. (HealthDay)

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

US Upholds Key Stem Cell Patent
A federal agency has upheld a patent that covers embryonic stem cell research, rejecting a challenge from critics who say the patents are hindering research. An examiner with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled this week that one of three patents can stand. A challenge to two other patents remains pending. ( Associated Press)

The Proxy War — SCHIP and the Government’s Role in Health Care Reform
The conflagration over the reauthorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) offers a compelling example of Washington’s current inability to address even seemingly uncontroversial matters such as improved health care coverage for children. After the House failed to override President George W. Bush’s veto of a SCHIP expansion in October, Congressional leaders regrouped to develop a compromise measure that would address Bush’s claim that the original bill “moves the health care system in the wrong direction.”1 SCHIP permits coverage of children in families whose incomes (according to evaluation methods developed by the states) are at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. Like the first bill that Congress passed in the fall, the second measure would have provided states with the authority to extend the standard to 300% of the poverty level (with a limit of 350% permitted in New Jersey) while reducing states’ flexibility in determining what income counts in eligibility assessments. The bill also moved more aggressively to end SCHIP coverage of parents and other adults, imposed tougher citizenship-documentation requirements, and required states to try harder to avert health insurance crowd-out — the actual or potential tendency of one form of health insurance to substitute for other available coverage. (NEJM)

Thursday, February 28, 2008

China plans the end of hated one-child policy
China’s political leadership is considering ending the country’s hated “one-child” policy because it is damaging the economy and creating a demographic timebomb, a senior minister admitted today. (Times Online)

Op-Ed: Artificial Gametes: The What, Why and How of creating sperm and eggs in the laboratory
There was a lively audience at this public meeting held at the Centre for Life in Newcastle on 12 February, an evening debate organised by Progress Educational Trust. This is perhaps not surprising given the recent media speculation and the current political debate about the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill which proposes to ban the use of artificial gametes for fertility treatment. It was opportune therefore to address the scientific, ethical and political issues. (BioNews)

Friday, February 29, 2008

Each week the top news stories, as determined by the staff at The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity are sent out via email.

[Note: News stories, Quote of the Week, and events do not represent the Center's views. For additional commentary on many of the issues they raise, please see the CBHD web site at www.cbhd.org.]

Please visit http://www.bioethics.com for daily posts on bioethics news and issues.

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