[tt] CBC: Trading on the Female Body logo Trading on the Female Body

Fri Nov 16 20:27:59 UTC 2007

Trading on the Female Body logo Trading on the Female Body
A Newsletter of the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network 
http://www.cbc-network.org/enewsletter/index_11_14_07.htm

by Evan and Lani Rosa, CBC Staff Writers

On November 9, 2007, before a large audience in the Bay Area of
California, speakers that would normally have plenty to disagree
about came together in unity, with a common goal: to call for a
moratorium on the exploitation of women through the trading of
human eggs. This is a fight to raise awareness and promote safe
research and regulation of this industry.
Jennifer Lahl, the National Director of the CBC, moderated a panel
of five presenters, representing a wide range of experience and
perspectives.

* Diane Beeson, Ph. D. , Director, Hands Off Our Ovaries
* Dana Cody, Esq. , Executive Director, Life Legal Defense
  Foundation
* Nicole Marchand , Student, San Francisco State University, Hand
  Off Our Ovaries Board of Directors
* Calla Papademas , Stanford grad and survivor of health problems
  related to egg donation
* David Prentice, Ph. D. , Family Research Council

Trading on the Female Body Conference

But what's the controversy over trading human eggs? Well, for such
a serious international problem, it's alarming how few people even
recognize this as an issue. The event's panelists clarified the
facts, and cut through the often disingenuous media fog that too
often clouds the issue to the public.

[3]Dr. Prentice led off the discussion, noting the
promise of stem cells in treating injuries and diseases, some
currently without cure. In order to continue embryonic stem cell
research (ESCR) in this field, researchers need the raw material
for developing effective therapeutic treatments. And human eggs are
the hot commodity. And they have only one source: the female body.
For effective research, Prentice explained, up to 100 eggs are
required per patient. Scientists agree that as many as 1.7 billion
human eggs would be needed to fully treat just one disease group in
one country. So that would require 170 million women of
child-bearing age to step forward and donate 100 eggs. There aren't
even that many fertile women in the United States alone. Now you
should have a better idea of the international scale of this
problem; women everywhere could be adversely affected.

Prentice went on to offer a more viable and ethically-sound
solution: adult stem cells. Adult stem cells many donated by the
patients themselves have already been effective in treating at
least 73 scientifically peer reviewed cases of disease and injury,
producing astounding results of healing and health improvement.
Compared to ESCR's zero cases of successful treatment, it seems we
have a safer and more effective alternative than politicians and
stem cell enthusiasts are willing to admit.

Panelist Dana Cody of [4]Life Legal Defense Foundation represented
the legal front in the battle to regulate egg trade. Cody assisted
in litigation to challenge California's [5]Proposition 71 . Prop 71
was approved by a small majority of California voters in 2004 and
has become the groundbreaking initiative that will forge the way
for embryonic stem cell research to move forward . Unable to repeal
the legislation, women are left to fend for themselves. Cody
suggests that women should now take initiative to become educated
on what the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM)
is doing to regulate and oversee the research under Prop 71, and
demand measures to protect the women affected. At a time when a
shortage of eggs is of increasing concern to researchers, women
must be aware that their health and lives are at threat by
legislation like Prop 71.

[6]Dr. Diane Beeson spoke from years of experience
in the area of women's health and fertility, providing a
sociological history of the egg trade up to the present-day push
for therapeutic cloning research. Beeson cited a moment of personal
realization that Prop 71 allocates a vast amount of money to
prioritize the most speculative and least successful form of stem
cell research embryo cloning research. As a lifelong pro-choice
advocate, she is deeply concerned that such experiments would
require huge amounts of human eggs and that acquiring these eggs
would jeopardize the health of large numbers of young women.

The most powerful appeal to action came when
listening to [7]Calla Papademus , who related her experiences as a
respondent to an egg donation ad. Papademus fell into the target
market for egg donors. Motivated by unselfish, altruistic desire to
help make an infertile couple's dream come true she signed up, and
began self-administering hormone injections of Lupron immediately.
She immediately experienced serious side effects, including
debilitating migraine headaches, loss of vision, and nausea.
Calla's experience with egg donation is indelibly marked with
irresponsibility by the donation agency, which has forever changed
Calla. When she had questions about the consent form, she was
hurried and encouraged to just sign it. After repeated calls
complaining of her side effects, a nurse from the agency finally
responded that it was all part of taking the Lupron, and that she
should continue to endure taking it. Ultimately, the agency's
inadequate screening process and neglect cost Calla the ability to
naturally conceive children. Due to a small tumor on her pituitary
gland, she had experienced irregular menstrual cycles as a teen,
which is an immediate disqualification as an egg donor. A simple
question by the agency (which it denies having neglected) for Calla
but through neglect, the Lupron enlarged her tumor, which cut off
the blood supply to her brain, causing a major stroke and
paralysis.

The evening ended with a call to action from
Nicole Marchand , a student and [8]Hands Off Our Ovaries intern.
After hearing stories like Calla's, Marchand responded with action,
and is calling others to join her. Formed in 2006, Hands Off Our
Ovaries seeks a moratorium on egg extraction for research purposes
until such time as global discourse and scientific research yields
information sufficient to establish adequate informed consent.
Marchand and her colleagues reach out to other young women on
college campuses who are vulnerable to solicitations for their
eggs, speak to classes, post warnings, and continue to fight the
human egg trade through events such as this.
Humanity continues to progress scientifically and technologically
developing new research methodology, unprecedented procedures, and
dreaming bigger and better dreams about our human future. So much
is unprecedented. And therein lies the problem. Without the
foreknowledge to see the effects (and side-effects) of this
research for the short- and long- term, we continue to risk lives
and resources for the sake of progress.
The message from Trading on the Female Body was clear: At a time
when government and industry do not act to protect women, it is
critical that as human beings, we must act to protect each other,
continue to raise awareness, and seek to equip individuals and
communities to affect change.

   ______________________________________________________________

CBC Staff Writers:

Lani Rosa is a graduate of Indiana University, where
she earned her B.S. in Economics and Public Policy and B.A. in
Spanish. Since relocating to the Bay Area from Kentucky she has
worked in areas of microeconomic development, database consulting,
and accounting within the non-profit and private sectors. She lives
in Emeryville, CA with her husband, Evan, where she enjoys reading
and baking pies.

Evan Rosa is a graduate of University of California,
Berkeley, where he earned B.A.'s in Philosophy and Linguistics. He
currently works as a communication consultant, and enjoys playing
and writing music, an earthy cup of coffee and a good surf session.
He and his wife Lani live in Emeryville, CA.

References

    1. http://www.statcounter.com/
    2. http://www.cbc-network.org/
    3. http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=BY04H12
    4. http://www.lldf.org/
    5. http://www.cirm.ca.gov/pdf/prop71.pdf
    6. http://handsoffourovaries.com/images/beesontestimony.pdf
    7. http://www.stanfordalumni.org/news/magazine/2000/novdec/articles/eggdonor.html
    8. http://www.handsoffourovaries.com/
    9. mailto:rantsandraves at cbc-network.org
   10. http://www.cbc-network.org/sixthousand
   11. http://www.goodsearch.com/