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November 2008

Universal AIDS testing: should we save the many at the cost of harm to the few?

In a paper published in the Lancet yesterday, a group of WHO scientists
have suggested that a radical change to HIV testing would be necessary
to combat the epidemic. The authors published details of a mathematical
model of “universal voluntary testing” and early drug treatment of all
those found to have HIV in a country with HIV levels similar to those
present in Southern Africa. They present striking and provocative
evidence that this approach could reduce dramatically the incidence and
mortality from HIV within a fairly short period. The major ethical
question raised in response to their proposal is whether such a
strategy would violate the rights of individuals, and impose harms on
them in order to secure greater benefits for others.

Read More »Universal AIDS testing: should we save the many at the cost of harm to the few?

The Future of Making Organs for Self-Transplantation

Scientists have been able to create a new windpipe using stem cells. They took a windpipe from a dead patient, removed all the cells, and placed stem cells from a patient onto the remaining scaffolding to create what was in effect a new windpipe, with the patient’s own cells. The patient had an irreparably damaged her windpipe from TB.

The significance of this is that it opens the door to creating whole organs, like kidneys, livers and perhaps even hearts and lungs. This is a radical advance because up until now, stem cells have only really been useful to replace tissue, or bits of the body without a complex organized structure. But this means we could potentially replace any part of the body with a person’s own stem cells. New livers for people with liver failure, new kidneys from those with kidney failure – and because the cells would come from the patient, there would be no rejection. Indeed, this patient has shown no signs of rejection.

Does this raise any ethical issues?

Read More »The Future of Making Organs for Self-Transplantation

Status quo bias and presumed consent for organ donation

Yesterday the UK organ donation taskforce released its report on a
presumed consent (opt-out) system for organ donation. To the
consternation of the chief medical officer and the Prime Minister the
taskforce advised against the introduction into the UK of such a system.

In an editorial in today’s Guardian, it was observed that both the low
rates of consent in the UK – and the taskforce’s response to the
question of presumed consent may represent an irrational preference for
the default position. They may both be examples of the status quo bias.

Read More »Status quo bias and presumed consent for organ donation

Animal experimentation: morally acceptable, or just the way things always have been?

Following
the announcement last week that Oxford University’s controversial Biomedical
Sciences building
is now complete and will be open for business in mid-2009, the ethical issues
surrounding the use of animals for scientific experimentation have been
revisited in the media—see, for example, here ,
here,
and here.

The number
of animals used per year in scientific experiments worldwide has been estimated
at 200 million—well in excess of the population of Brazil and over three times that of the United Kingdom. If we take the importance of an ethical issue
to depend in part on how many subjects it affects, then, the ethics of animal
experimentation at the very least warrants consideration alongside some of the
most important issues in this country today, and arguably exceeds them in
importance. So, what is being done to address
this issue?

Read More »Animal experimentation: morally acceptable, or just the way things always have been?

Reliably sinful – how to maximise profit

Even in these changing times it would appear some things stay the same. One example would be our insatiable appetite for vice. Indeed, given the bleak financial situation the demand for a bit of instant gratification might well be on the increase. This is the business idea behind the Vice Fund and other similar enterprises. The perpetual flux aside, alcohol, gambling, cigarettes and arms never seem to go out of fashion. Some financial analysts say that as the demand for this type of products is comparatively stable and less sensitive to recession an investment portfolio consisting of ‘unethical stocks’ will fare better than its ethical counterpart. This idea is neatly illustrated in the catchphrase of the US based Vice Fund “When it’s good, it’s very, very good …and when it’s bad it’s better”.

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Much ado about nothing

“A newborn is not a person, because a person is someone who has
self-consciousness and has a sense of morality and rationality. In some
cases of severely deformed babies, it could be reasonable to accept
euthanasia like in Holland.” This simple idea, not really impressive
and not revolutionary at all (read Engelhardt and Singer, for a start)
generated a massive uproar and was accused of being profoundly
offensive and provocative.

 

Read More »Much ado about nothing

Hacking the spammers

Why is there spam? The simple answer is that "there is a sucker born every minute" and email is cheap enough to reach millions of potential suckers who might want to buy Viagra, sure-fire investments and fake Rolexes. A new study has discovered that it is enough with one response to every 12.5 million emails sent is enough to be profitable. The most interesting about the study was how it was done: by hacking the spammers own network. But is it OK to hack in order to understand spam?

Read More »Hacking the spammers