London Fertility Centre Responds To The HFEA Consultation On Hybrid And Chimera Embryos

Main Category: Fertility
Also Included In: Stem Cell Research
Article Date: 28 Apr 2007 - 12:00 PDT

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London Fertility Centre commends the decision by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to hold public consultation into the regulation of hybrid and chimera embryos since it is aware that members of the general public may not agree with this area of research, considering it as science stepping into science fiction. However, the use of such embryos may have scientific and later clinical benefits that far outweigh these initial concerns.

London Fertility Centre considers that there would not be any need to entertain the idea of chimera and hybrid embryos if HFEA initiatives were promoted to give realistic financial compensation for more egg and sperm donors to come forward and donate their gametes specifically for research projects, including the isolation of stem cell lines.

This is especially so now that the HFEA have given permission for one centre to allow women to donate half of their eggs to research at the same time as benefiting from IVF from the remaining half of the eggs that are not given away thereby receiving an indirect financial benefit.

London Fertility Centre predicts that in general there would be fewer concerns if research was to be undertaken on human embryos from donors who have given informed consent to their specific use rather than research being undertaken on embryos created in part with animal eggs.

London Fertility Centre (LFC) is one of the most comprehensive and long standing providers of assisted conception treatments in the UK. LFC offers a broad scope of services for both male and female factor infertility as well as a caring approach.

LFC has an impressive track record in comprehensive fertility treatments and pioneered many of the new developments now used routinely in assisted conception worldwide.

http://www.lfc.org.uk

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