Featured Resource of the Month —CBHD Fellow Daniel A. Beals, MD, offers a case study on off-label use of prescription drugs, entitled “Permissibility to Stop Off-Label Use of Expensive Drug Treatment for Child?” originally published in Ethics & Medicine: An International Journal of Bioethics.

Podcast
 

Employment Opportunities —

Administrative Assistant (Temporary Part-time):   CBHD is seeking to hire on a temporary basis, beginning immediately and ending on or before June 30th.  Previous experience in bioethics is not necessary.  The ideal candidate will be self-motivated, possess strong organizational, communication, and computer skills, as well as being adaptable to a changing workplace environment.  If you or someone you know is looking for a position in the northern suburbs of Chicago, please have them send a resume to Michael Sleasman, Managing Director & Research Scholar of the Center, at msleasman@cbhd.org.

Director of Development, CBHD & Bioethics at Trinity (Fulltime):  Position is responsible for developing a strategic plan, performing ongoing analysis and program implementation to achieve the development goals for Trinity's bioethics initiatives. This person will be versatile, able to perform competently in a wide variety of development functions. These functions will include event planning and execution, major gifts, foundation relations, annual fund solicitations, marketing and communications, church relations, and data management. For more information click here.

Quote of the Month —

"This is really a complicated subject. I mean, knowing your genes or particularly the single nucleotide differences within your genes is, at best, a little bit like looking at a great painting and analyzing its pigments. It isn't going to give you the picture. It's going to tell you something about the fundamental components out of which the mix of environmental influences, gene/gene interactions, stochastic effects, and so forth have helped to fashion the person. So one of the things we could definitely do is to clarify what you can actually gain from such understanding, what do tests tell you, which is a lot less than some people seem to think. Much of it will end up being statistical because of the complexity of gene/gene interactions, among others."

— Dr. William Hurlbut, President's Council on Bioethics member, and Consulting Professor, Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford Medical Center, Stanford University, in "The Ethics of Newborn Screening," bioethics.gov, March 7, 2008.

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

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics Public Lecture 2008: The ranking of values as a basis for ethical decision making
May 7, 2008
The Royal Society, 6-9 Carlton House Terrace
London SW1Y 5AG
Email: cperkins@nuffieldbioethics.org
Tel: +44 20 7681 9619

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

Call for Abstracts: Challenges to Ethical Considerations in Research in the East Mediterranean and Arab Region: Research Subjects, Researchers and Research Ethics Committees Perspectives
Deadline: May 31, 2008
Research Policy and Cooperation Unit
Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office, WHO,
Email: rpc@emro.who.int
Tel: +2 02 227 65028 / +2 02 227 65348
Fax: +2 02 227 65421

Scientists claim victory in blocking stem-cell law after letter in Times
The Government has agreed to back down on strict laws planned for embryonic stem-cell experiments after a “compelling case” was made by leading scientists in a letter to The Times.

The letter, published last week, expressed alarm that the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill would delay potentially life-saving research by requiring all tissue used to create cloned embryonic stem cells to have the explicit consent of its donor. (Times Online)

The Informed Patient
Informed consent may be the biggest misnomer in medicine: Studies show that most patients don’t read the forms they sign before undergoing surgery or medical treatment. More than half of those who do read the forms don’t understand them, and only a quarter of forms include all of the data patients need to make an informed decision. (Wall Street Journal)

Obituary for the first human clone
Has there ever been a greater anticlimax in science than the announcement on January 17 that, at last, a cloned human embryo had been created? Even a few months ago the news would have flooded the world’s media; now it hardly rates a mention.

The reason is clear: on November 21 last year, cloning as a serious science suddenly died, and was superceded by a technique so simple and powerful (and entirely ethical) that it has left the world of stem cell research both stunned and elated. (On Line Opinion)

Embryonic Debate
If a human embryo were something other than a human being in the embryonic stage of development—an embryonic human being—what could it be? (National Review Online)

Doctors balk at request for data
The state’s largest for-profit health insurer is asking California physicians to look for conditions it can use to cancel their new patients’ medical coverage. (Los Angeles Times)

German Parliament to Discuss Reforming Stem Cell Law
Some scientists and politicians believe the 2002 law restricting the use of stem cells in German research is no longer in sync with modern medicine. Opponents to a change in the law fear abuse of human embryos. (Deutsche Welle)

Op-Ed: Defending Life and Dignity
In his State of the Union address President Bush spoke briefly on matters of life and science. He stated his intention to expand funding for new possibilities in medical research, to take full advantage of recent breakthroughs in stem cell research that provide pluripotent stem cells without destroying nascent human life. At the same time, he continued, “we must also ensure that all life is treated with the dignity that it deserves. And so I call on Congress to pass legislation that bans unethical practices such as the buying, selling, patenting, or cloning of human life.” (The Weekly Standard)

Stem Cells Repair Stroke Damage in Rats
Human stem cells helped repair stroke-related brain damage in rats, Stanford University researchers report. (HealthDay)

Luxembourg to become third EU country to allow euthanasia
The bill, which still has to be approved in a second reading to take effect, fuelled passionate debates in Luxembourg, where Catholic values remain firmly entrenched. The medical community was mostly against it. (AFP)

‘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)

‘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)

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)

‘Vaccinate your kids or you’ll go to prison’ / Belgium takes hard stand in world fight against dread disease
As doctors struggle to eradicate polio worldwide, one of their biggest problems is persuading parents to vaccinate their children. In Belgium, authorities are resorting to an extreme measure: prison sentences. (San Francisco Chronicle)

Chemical brain controls nanobots
A tiny chemical “brain” which could one day act as a remote control for swarms of nano-machines has been invented.

The molecular device - just two billionths of a metre across - was able to control eight of the microscopic machines simultaneously in a test. (BBC)

This couple want a deaf child. Should we try to stop them?
From embryo selection to abortion, fertility treatment to stem cell research, medical advances have created a furious ethical debate. Now MPs must decide how far science should be allowed to go.

Like any other three-year-old child, Molly has brought joy to her parents. Bright-eyed and cheerful, Molly is also deaf - and that is an issue which vexes her parents, though not for the obvious reasons. Paula Garfield, a theatre director, and her partner, Tomato Lichy, an artist and designer, are also deaf and had hoped to have a child who could not hear. (Guardian)

Wisconsin: Penalty for Pharmacist’s Refusal Upheld
The 3rd District Court of Appeals ruled that the punishment the state Pharmacy Examining Board handed down against pharmacist Neil Noesen did not violate his state constitutional rights, specifically his “right of conscience” to religiously oppose birth control. (Associated Press)

Who’s your daddy? Answer’s at the drugstore
The paternity kits have taken their place on store shelves next to other diagnostic tests that don’t rely on DNA, including those for pregnancy, HIV and blood sugar, said Michael S. Watson, executive director of the American College of Medical Genetics. (MSNBC)

Report: Crazy Xs
Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are genetically unstable over time in culture, which raises concerns about their clinical safety. Epigenetic changes, heritable controls over gene expression that do not alter DNA sequence, in hESCs may contribute significantly to this instability. Two studies published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences used complementary methods to examine X-chromosome inactivation in hESCs, reporting that this particular epigenetic change shows an incredible amount of variability between hESC lines regardless of the source of derivation. (Nature)

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 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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The contents of this article do not necessarily reflect the opinions of CBHD, its staff, board or supporters. Permission to reprint granted as long as The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity and the web address for this article is referenced.