Monthly Archives: August, 2012
Roundtable Discussion on Medical Countermeasures for Children
The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues has been examining the ethical considerations of conducting clinical trials of medical countermeasures for children. The Commission’s report will explore whether to conduct a pre- and post-event study of an anthrax vaccine as a component of treatment for children exposed to weaponized anthrax. At today’s meeting, [...]
Risk and Minimal Risk: How Low Can You Go?
David Wendler leads the Vulnerable Populations Unit in the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center’s Bioethics Department. In a conversation ranging from child soldiers to high school car washes, he led the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues through an exploration of minimal risk and societal benefit that will help inform the Commission’s [...]
Dryvax, individual risk and the greater good
How do you balance the individual risk of testing an anthrax vaccine for children against the societal good of having the vaccine on hand in case of an anthrax terrorist attack? This morning, the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues explored how researchers tackled this ethical dilemma in 2002. Months after 9/11, worried [...]
Wrapping up Genomics and Privacy
The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues wrapped up its public deliberations on genomics and privacy this morning, ending a more than year long examination of the emergence of whole genome sequencing as an addition to clinical care and genetic research. The Commission spent several hours publicly discussing the set of recommendations it [...]
Do privacy concerns follow the coffee cup?
As the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues continued its review of genomics and privacy, the group heard from experts on genomic database security, one from the private sector and one from the federal government. Ken Chahine, Ph.D., is the Senior Vice President of Ancestry.com and General Manager of AncestryDNA, two related companies [...]
On the Frontiers of Technology and Privacy
Latanya Sweeney, Ph.D., director and founder of Harvard University’s Data Privacy Lab, has made a career of weaving technology and policy together. Her presentation today provided real-world examples in the realm of consumer data privacy that helped the Commission continue its examination of genomics and privacy. Sweeney’s exploration of how medical data is handled—mapping out [...]
Assessing the Life-Saving Potential and Privacy Implications of Whole Genome Sequencing
As researchers develop faster and less expensive methods of whole genome sequencing—the process in which a person’s DNA is decoded and analyzed—the potential to quickly diagnose current and future diseases has become tantalizingly close. But privacy concerns have emerged as the technology becomes more widespread. For scientists to make life-saving discoveries, individuals must be willing [...]
Live from Washington
Welcome to coverage of the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, which is meeting today and tomorrow in Washington, D.C. (August 1-2, 2012). This meeting will continue discussions on genomic privacy, which the Commission has been following since January 2011. At the heart of the Commission’s work on genomics is how to reconcile an [...]
