Ethics

Stem cell research raises many ethical and societal issues – relating to the source, derivation and storage of stem cells, and to commercialisation, patentability, access to treatment, risk and safety.

Perspectives on each of these issues vary across Europe. For some European citizens, for example, embryonic stem cell research is acceptable. Others believe that embryos should not be used for research. There is also a range of regulatory approaches to this issue.

Recognising these different perspectives, ethical considerations and analyses are central to our project.

Ethics Flagship Project & Workshops: A Forum for Ethics and Societal Issues Related to Stem Cell Research
Led by Professor Göran Hermerén, from the University of Lund, this project considers a range of topical issues relating to stem cell research. It’s structured around a series of workshops, which aim not only to identify and analyse ethical problems, but also come up with suggestions to address these problems - related to current regulations in the countries where research is carried out. A working paper is prepared in advance of each workshop, and a full report on the workshop itself is published on this site.

The first workshop, held in Brussels in February 2005, looked at the ethical aspects of stem cell repositories and databases. It focussed on the key issues of informed consent, safety, security, confidentiality, traceability and fair access. Read more.

Commercialization and patentability of stem cells and stem cell lines was the theme of our second ethics workshop, held in Lund in February 2006. Read more.

Our third ethics workshop, Ethical Aspects of Stem Cell Research in Europe, was held in Berlin, from 19-20 April 2007, in partnership with ESTOOLS. Read more.