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iPS cells and ARMD: continuation of the Japanese trial using new methods
In Japan, Masayo Takahashi is carrying out a clinical trial using iPS cells to treat ARMD, age-related macular degeneration - a"very debilitating disease that can cause partial blindness". For the first patient, the injection of skin-derived iPS cells stopped disease...
Scientists demand a better framework to carry out their work “in good conscience”
To what extent should scientists be authorised to create elements that resemble primitive human brains, hearts or even human embryos? This question was put to a group of Harvard scientists using stem cells, genetics and other new biological engineering techniques to...
Down syndrome at the UN: questions on the eugenic spin-offs of prenatal screening
To mark the occasion of World Down Syndrome Day, a meeting was held on 20 March at the United Nations in Geneva, to promote equal rights for people with Down Syndrome. This event was organised during the 34th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council by Stop...
#Notspecialneeds: a video for World Down Syndrome Day
The Jérôme Lejeune Foundation released the " Not special needs, just human needs" (Pas de besoins spéciaux, juste des besoins humains) video in France to coincide with World Down Syndrome Day, an initiative officially recognised by the UN. The fruit of...
MAP (medically assisted procreation): “One day, they throw in the towel – a painful but relieving moment”
" What do you do after collapsing on the bathroom floor in tears? (…) You throw yourself into another project. Life takes on a new direction and you surprisingly find it wonderful all the same! ”explained Charlotte who has tried for years to become a mother....
Northern Australia reforms its abortion law
Northern Australia has reformed its law on abortion in order to "harmonise it with the rest of Australia". This "far-reaching" reform decriminalises abortion and involves a certain number of measures: It authorises the use of RU486 (abortion medication), grants...
“I am entitled to have a baby”: the surrogacy business is flourishing in the United States
The “Les Echos” newspaper conducted a survey on the US surrogacy business. This market was created about thirty years ago and now boasts an annual turnover of approximately "$4 billion" according to the Harris Williams&Co practice. Tens of agencies offer to put...
United Kingdom: a debate on gender-selection abortions
Professor of Obstetrics, Wendy Savage, has declared that women should be informed of the sex of the foetus when they have an ultrasound scan. She believes that retaining information "for fear of gender-selection abortions" is "scandalous". 81 year-old Wendy Savage is...
Understanding transplant rejections to avoid them
Two scientists from Quebec, Marie-Josée Hébert and Mélanie Dieudé, “have just discovered why the human body sometimes rejects transplanted organs". After a long period of research dating back to the 1990s, they have proven that "signals sent by the transplanted organs...
Angola: draft bill criminalising abortion is postponed indefinitely
Reform of the Angolan criminal code, voted on during the initial reading last month, included a draft bill aimed at suppressing abortion (see Angola reforms its abortion law). On Thursday, the chairman of the Parliamentary Group of the party currently in power, which...
Stem cells: excessive expectations lead to scandals
In the United States, three women aged 72, 78 and 88 have lost their sight following stem cell injections in their eyes, in 2015, to treat ARMD. This resulted in "a gradual and irreversible loss of vision". The injections "were administered as part of a pseudo-study...
Palliative care must take a person’s spiritual and religious needs into account
In the United Kingdom, the National Institute for Health and Care has just published "an end of life guide". The concept of "palliative care" was created in this country (where euthanasia is prohibited) "following the work of pioneer, Cicely Saunders (1918-2005)"...