The Implications of Obstructing Fetal Tissue Research
Authors: Mary Woolley, Eleanor Dehoney
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2019)

Ideas and Opinions3 September 2019The Implications of Obstructing Fetal Tissue ResearchMary Woolley, MA and Eleanor Dehoney, MSMary Woolley, MAResearch!America, Arlington, Virginia (M.W., E.D.)Search for more papers by this author and Eleanor Dehoney, MSResearch!America, Arlington, Virginia (M.W., E.D.)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M19-2061 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail On 5 June 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced policy changes that will dramatically curtail—and potentially end—fetal tissue research in the United States. The new policy prohibits procurement of new fetal tissue for intramural research at the National Institutes of Health, circumscribing this research and precluding any future projects at the Institutes, regardless of potential (1). It also establishes an extra layer of qualitative scrutiny—over and above already rigorous peer review—for extramural research using fetal tissue (1). In addition, it abruptly ends a longstanding contract for fetal tissue research with the University of California, San Francisco ...References1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Statement from the Department of Health and Human Services. 5 June 2019. Accessed at www.hhs.gov/about/news/2019/06/05/statement-from-the-department-of-health-and-human-services.html on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar2. International Society for Stem Cell Research. Sign On Support Letter Pocan Amendment, 2019. Accessed at www.isscr.org/docs/default-source/policy-documents/sign-on-support-letter-pocan-amendment.pdf?sfvrsn=2 on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar3. Sheridan K. HIV research halted after NIH freezes acquisition of fetal tissue. STAT. 9 December 2018. Accessed at www.statnews.com/2018/12/09/fetal-tissue-freeze-hiv-research-halted on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar4. Wadman M. Updated: NIH says cancer study also hit by fetal tissue ban. Science. 13 December 2018. Accessed at www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/12/trump-administration-has-quietly-barred-nih-scientists-acquiring-fetal-tissue on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar5. National Institutes of Health. Notice of intent to publish funding opportunity announcements for research to develop, demonstrate, and validate experimental human tissue models that do not rely on human fetal tissue. Notice no. NOT-OD-19-042. 10 December 2018. Accessed at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-19-042.html on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar6. National Institutes of Health. Success rates: research project grants and other mechanisms: competing applications, awards, success rates, and funding, by Institute/Center, mechanism/funding source, and activity code. 2019. Accessed at https://report.nih.gov/DisplayRePORT.aspx?rid=601 on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar7. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying cause of death 1999-2017. CDC WONDER; 2018. Accessed at https://wonder.cdc.gov/wonder/help/ucd.html on 26 June 2019. Google Scholar8. Lehtonen L, Gimeno A, Parra-Llorca A, et al. Early neonatal death: a challenge worldwide. Semin Fetal Neonatal Med. 2017;22:153-60. [PMID: 28238633] doi:10.1016/j.siny.2017.02.006 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Birth defects are common, costly, and critical. 2014. Accessed at www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/birthdefects/infographic.html on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar10. National Institutes of Health. NIH grants policy statement 4.1.14: human fetal tissue research. 2018. Accessed at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps/html5/section_4/4.1.14_human_fetal_tissue_research.htm on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Research!America, Arlington, Virginia (M.W., E.D.)Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M19-2061.Corresponding Author: Mary Woolley, MA, Research!America, 241 18th Street South, Arlington, VA 22202; e-mail, [email protected]org.Current Author Addresses: Ms. Woolley and Ms. Dehoney: Research!America, 241 18th Street South, Arlington, VA 22202.Author Contributions: Drafting of the article: M. Woolley, E. Dehoney.Final approval of the article: M. Woolley, E. Dehoney.This article was published at Annals.org on 23 July 2019. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics 3 September 2019Volume 171, Issue 5Page: 366-367KeywordsCongenital disordersDisclosureFetusesForecastingHealth services researchImmune systemParkinson diseasePrevention, policy, and public healthVaccinesZika virus ePublished: 23 July 2019 Issue Published: 3 September 2019 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2019 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...