News that the Association of British Insurers (ABI) has agreed to refrain from asking its customers for genetic tests results has been greeted with open arms this week. Genetics regulators, patients and doctors alike have all breathed a sigh of relief that a five-year moratorium on the use of genetic...
It comes as no surprise that a British couple have used embryo screening at a clinic in Chicago to conceive a child who could act as a compatible bone marrow donor for his or her brother with leukaemia. If there are professionally approved clinics that are willing and able under...
This week's edition of BioNews reports that a Massachusetts court has ruled that the commissioning couple in a surrogacy arrangement can be named as the parents on the birth certificate of their twins. The judges claimed that their unanimous decision was aimed at 'bringing the law in line with advances...
Over the next few days, the media is likely to be mulling over the story of Mr and Mrs Hashmi. The couple would like to use preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) to have a child both free from beta thalassaemia and who would be a suitable blood donor to two-year old...
It's not often that I get mad about a newspaper article. You expect mistakes to creep into articles about science. You even expect a little bit of sensationalism when it comes to discussing controversial issues. But one article in this week's Daily Mail was unusually vitriolic. Mary Riddell, a regular...
Should IVF and donor insemination (DI) be available only to married women? This is a debate preoccupying the Australian High Court at the moment, as it seeks to find a resolution to a growing legal and political battle of wills. Although a decision may be some time coming, the judges...
Since there is little to comment upon in this week's news, may we take this opportunity to give an advance notice about a forthcoming conference organised by Progress Educational Trust. It has been 10 years since the UK's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority came into existence. The HFEA and the...
A study published last week in Human Reproduction shows that there is a genetic clue to the age at which a woman has her menopause. This seems to have sparked a great deal of interest in the press, who have since been advising us (especially the 'career women') 'how to...
Weekend news of a woman who is to conceive using her brother's sperm has caused a flurry of press attention in the UK. The clinic involved, the Bridge Centre in London, seems to be on its own in defending its decision to help the woman conceive. Most others commentators - pro...
There is something about a surrogacy case - particularly a failed one - which seems to bring everyone out in a rash of moral outrage. The latest such incident is the case of Helen Beasley, whose story was first reported in last week's BioNews. Surrogacy is one of those issues that often...
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