An American biotech company claims to have developed a method to produce human embryonic stem cells without deliberately destroying embryos in the process. The process that has been proposed involves removing a single cell from a three-day old embryo, which has been created by IVF, and using it to p...

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An Argentine court has blocked moves to perform an abortion on a mentally disabled woman who conceived a child after allegedly being raped. A federal court in Mendoza ruled that the abortion was not to take place after pro-life groups revealed that she was in her 20th week of pregnancy, not her 12th...

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The Catholic bishops of England and Wales have urged Amnesty International not to support abortion rights. The press office of the episcopal conference sent a letter to Amnesty earlier this month, asking them to maintain their neutral stance on abortion. The bishops said in their statement, "We urge...

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weekly update, 16 to 22 August Weekly Update, 16 to 22 August Catholic doctors have spoken in the UN General Assembly promoting the rights of the disabled and calling for them to protected at the beginning and the end of life. The International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations made t...

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Further to our report of 15th August in which the Chinese Vice Health Minister Jiang Zuojun claimed that late term abortions are rare, the Population Research Institute (PRI) has said that on the contrary, late term abortions are common in China. Joseph D'Agostino from PRI said, "This is complete ba...

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Lawyers acting for Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese activist campaigning against the country's one-child policy, have been detained on the eve of his trial. Chen, who has been arrested and imprisoned numerous times since researching forced abortions and sterilisations in the Shandong province, has...

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News, Lawyers acting for Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese activist campaigning against the country's one-child policy, have been detained on the eve of his trial. Chen, who has been arrested and imprisoned numerous times since researching forced abortions and sterilisations in the Shandong provi...

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Teenage girls in the north of England may be being pressured into abortions so that local councils can reduce the number of underage pregnancies, according to campaigners. Counsellor Hazel Sewell from Preston said: "A lot of girls tell us they felt pressured to go ahead with it [the abortion]." An a...

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A BBC Radio presenter has made public her plans for a formal euthanasia pact with two friends. Ms Jenni Murray, presenter of Woman's Hour is to sign an agreement with Sally Feldman, a former editor of Woman's Hour, and Jane Wilton that, if they become incapacitated, the others will kill them. Ms Mur...

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Jiang Zuojun, vice health minister of China, has denied allegations that late-term abortions are common, or that the Chinese state sanctions forced abortions. He did not comment on the ongoing case of Chen Guangcheng, arrested after he attempted to bring a lawsuit against the government over forced ...

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weekly update, 10 to 15 August Weekly Update, 10 to 15 August Disputes arising from the Mental Capacity Act may be heard behind closed doors, the Daily Mail reports. The Mental Capacity Act establishes a new Court of Protection to judge the validity of 'living wills' and lasting powers of attor...

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Disputes arising from the Mental Capacity Act may be heard behind closed doors, the Daily Mail reports. The Mental Capacity Act establishes a new Court of Protection to judge the validity of 'living wills' and lasting powers of attorney, which can be used to deprive mentally-incapacitated patients o...

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Doubts are being cast over the safety of egg removal for IVF and stem cell research. Scientists have argued that, since egg removal is still in its infancy, it is very hard to know whether the hormones women are required to take before the operation cause any long term side-effects. One study has su...

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News, It has been revealed that the woman from Leicester, England, who died on Monday because of a mistake in an IVF operation may have suffered ovarian hyper stimulation syndrome which caused massive internal bleeding. The doctors involved in the operation are being question by the health authori...

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News, A woman in Leicester, England, died on Monday evening after a routine operation to remove eggs for IVF treatment. The woman is thought to be the first to die in the UK because of IVF-related treatment. This woman, who is yet to be named, is said to have been desperate for children and her fa...

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A woman in Leicester, England, died on Monday evening after a routine operation to remove eggs for IVF treatment. The woman is thought to be the first to die in the UK because of IVF-related treatment. This woman, who is yet to be named, is said to have been desperate for children and her family is ...

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weekly update, 1 to 9 August Weekly Update, 1 to 9 August A Scottish man suffering from a degenerative disease has again been refused an assurance that, when his condition deteriorates, doctors will give him artificial nutrition and hydration. The European Court of Human Rights upheld the decis...

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No assurance for Scottish man over artificial nutrition & hydration A Scottish man suffering from a degenerative disease has again been refused an assurance that, when his condition deteriorates, doctors will give him artificial nutrition and hydration. The European Court of Human Rights upheld ...

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News, A Scottish man suffering from a degenerative disease has again been refused an assurance that, when his condition deteriorates, doctors will give him artificial nutrition and hydration. The European Court of Human Rights upheld the decision of the English Court of Appeal last year in the cas...

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News, A coroner investigating the death of a woman allegedly starved and deprived of fluids in a Norfolk hospital has been asked to hold an inquest into the death of a man on the same ward. Relatives of Harold Speed, who had been examined by the same doctor as Olive Nockels, believe that he died o...

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