Bioethics

There are major bioethical objections to surrogacy.

There's no agreement about what factors to consider. Alabama guidelines would exclude patients with severe mental retardation. New York policy is to maximize the number of lives saved—meaning a 90-year-old patient would get the same priority as a 20-year-old.

An ongoing case in Israel touches on a decades-old global debate.

"Some people think separating them when you know one will die is an act of killing, and other people think it's the only humane thing."

There are virtually no regulations for CRISPR technology.

Pediatric oncologists must sometimes call in authorities, or ask themselves whether the care they're providing is doing more harm than good.

If human stem cells grew into ovaries and testes, it might be possible for human-pig chimeras to mate and possibly give birth to a human child.

If there is limited or no psychological continuity, the original person won't benefit: They are now truly dead, since their body and brain have become a new person.

Researchers have figured out a way to keep embryos alive for much longer—great news for science but a headache for bioethicists.

Parents who wish to enhance their offspring may be risk-averse to the unknown adverse consequences.