Ben Jones

Ben Jones was previously a Volunteer Writer at BioNews and an Adviser to the charity that publishes it, the Progress Educational Trust (PET). His BioNews article 'Lord Winston labels egg freezing an expensive confidence trick' is reproduced in Reproductive Ethics (buy this book from Amazon UK). He is currently studying for a DPhil at the University of Oxford's Centre for Socio-Legal Studies. Previously, he studied Philosophy and the Biological and Biomedical Sciences at the the University of Cambridge, where he went on to obtain an MPhil. His research at Cambridge concerned the social construction of the human admixed embryo in the UK, with a particular focus on media coverage of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008.

BioNews Articles by Ben Jones

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27 July 2009 • 4 minutes read

The Press, Public Debate and the Public Understanding of Ethics

by Ben Jones

Many of the developments in the biosciences reported on in BioNews involve novel moral issues or further complicate existing ethical debates. While concerns about the efficacy or safety of a new therapy inevitably lead to calls for further action within the scientific community - more research, bigger studies, better analysis - ethical worries instead result in calls for non-specialist external validation, consultation exercises, public debate and engagement. While the public are put i

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News

9 July 2009 • 2 minutes read

New rules allow federal funding of US stem cell lines

by Ben Jones

The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has published new rules that will govern state funded embryonic stem (ES) cell research now that the seven years of restriction under the Bush administration have come to an end. The new rules restrict research to stem cells sourced from surplus embryos donated by IVF patients and, consequently, forbid research on any embryo that was created specifically for the purposes of research (either through voluntary donation of human eggs or by employing...

BioNews

News

6 July 2009 • 2 minutes read

Mother Sues Over False Negative Cystic Fibrosis Test

by Ben Jones

A Scottish woman is suing Lothian Health Board for medical negligence after a cystic fibrosis (CF) test performed on her while pregnant produced a false negative result. The 41 year old woman from Edinburgh provided a mouthwash sample during her pregnancy in 1994, which tested negative for mutations in her CF gene. However, after her son was born in 1995, it was found that he had inherited the condition from her. Though the test was reported as negative, the claimant alleges that it was actua...

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News

6 July 2009 • 2 minutes read

Lord Winston labels egg freezing an 'expensive confidence trick'

by Ben Jones

Lord Winston, emeritus Professor of Fertility Studies at Imperial College London and pioneer of IVF, has criticised fertility clinics for over-hyping egg freezing services. In an interview with the Daily Mail newspaper he accuses providers of creating false optimism in the effectiveness of the procedure particularly where signing up patients for purely 'social' reasons. Before use of egg freezing grows further he calls for more research into both the effects of egg freezing on the ability to ...

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News

29 June 2009 • 2 minutes read

Three month old cancer patient has reproductive tissue frozen:

by Ben Jones

An American baby boy, undergoing treatment for cancer that is likely to leave him infertile, has had samples of his sperm-producing stem cells frozen. It is hoped that if his treatment results in infertility then he might later be able to have the tissues grown and reimplanted in an attempt to restore his fertility....

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News

22 June 2009 • 2 minutes read

New York state to pay for research egg donation

by Ben Jones

The US state of New York has announced plans to pay women to donate their eggs for research purposes. The plan, the first of its kind in the US, is designed to assist scientists wishing to perform human embryonic stem (ES) cell research. The body behind the proposed schemes is the Empire State Stem Cell Board (ESSCB) which has overall responsibility for the state's $600,000,000 stem cell research programme launched last year....

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News

8 June 2009 • 2 minutes read

New data released on global ART availability

by Ben Jones

The latest report (the eighth since 1989) on worldwide availability and uptake of assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) shows continued growth in demand and progress towards fewer embryo implantations. The study, produced by the International Committee for Monitoring Assisted Reproductive Technology (ICMART) is based on figures from 1563 clinics in 53 countries and compiles all available data for the year 2002 (the latest available)....

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26 May 2009 • 2 minutes read

Worse health for IVF twins but no harm in embryo freezing

by Ben Jones

Two studies have provided an insight into the health implications of using assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs). The first finds that twins conceived by ART are more likely to be born preterm, be of low birthweight and to be 60 per cent more likely to be admitted into...

BioNews

News

12 May 2009 • 2 minutes read

Setback for Down syndrome prenatal blood test

by Ben Jones

The effectiveness of a prenatal test for Down syndrome has been thrown into doubt after its developers, Sequenom, admitted that study data had been 'mishandled' by its employees. The company, which had been producing apparently strong results in house for its DNA and RNA blood testing products...

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News

1 May 2009 • 2 minutes read

Proposals for genetic testing of asymptomatic relatives and children

by Ben Jones

Two separate studies this week have called for extended provision of genetic testing to close family members of those who have died from sudden unexplained death (SUD), and to asymptomatic children in families affected by genetic diseases. By testing family members of 115 young persons whose deaths...

Ben Jones

BioNews Articles by Ben Jones

The Press, Public Debate and the Public Understanding of Ethics

New rules allow federal funding of US stem cell lines

Mother Sues Over False Negative Cystic Fibrosis Test

Lord Winston labels egg freezing an 'expensive confidence trick'

Three month old cancer patient has reproductive tissue frozen:

New York state to pay for research egg donation

New data released on global ART availability

Worse health for IVF twins but no harm in embryo freezing

Setback for Down syndrome prenatal blood test

Proposals for genetic testing of asymptomatic relatives and children

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Children born after ICSI or frozen embryo transfer may have slightly higher risk of childhood cancers

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Cigarette smoke affects male and female fertility in mice

Public supports wider use of genomics in healthcare – with safeguards

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