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Chapter 18 - Legal and Ethical Issues in Assisted Conception Treatment

from Section 3 - Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 November 2021

By
Basil C. Tarlatzis  and
Maria Milapidou
Edited by
Tahir Mahmood ,
Charles Savona-Ventura ,
Ioannis Messinis  and
Sambit Mukhopadhyay
Tahir Mahmood
Affiliation:
Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy
Charles Savona-Ventura
Affiliation:
University of Malta, Malta
Ioannis Messinis
Affiliation:
University of Thessaly, Greece
Sambit Mukhopadhyay
Affiliation:
Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital, UK
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Summary

Forty-two years have passed since the birth of the first child conceived after IVF of a human oocyte and subsequent transfer into the uterus of the ensuing embryo. Since then, the methods of medically assisted reproduction (MAR) are being widely applied all over the world but, at the same time, scientists, policy makers and ethicists have started the debate regarding the necessity of laws and regulations governing the application of these methods, especially due to the possible risks associated with their application.

This chapter highlights the main legal and ethical issues associated with assisted conception, especially the fact that the lack of a common and binding position among European countries gives rise to problems of particular importance (i.e. non-egalitarian access of all European citizens to the achievements and advancements of reproductive technology, reproductive tourism, or problems associated with international scientific cooperation).

Keywords

medically assisted reproductionlawregulationlegal and ethical dilemmasreproductive technologyreproductive tourism
Type
Chapter
Information
The EBCOG Postgraduate Textbook of Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Gynaecology
 , pp. 146 - 151
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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