Xenotransplantation: Science, Ethics, and Public Policy

Excerpt

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) convened a committee in October 1994 to plan a workshop to consider the scientific and medical feasibility of xenotransplantation and to explore the ethical and public policy issues applicable to the possibility of renewed clinical trials of xenotransplantation. Another area of focus was added in response to increasing concern about the potential risk of animal-to-human disease transmission through xenotransplantation. The three-day workshop was held in late June 1995 and involved 43 speakers and presenters and more than 200 participants. The workshop focused on three major topics: the science base; the public health risks of infectious disease transmission; and the ethical and public policy issues, including the views of patients and their families.