Life Links 7/29/08

Some terminally ill patients in Oregon looking for medical care have been denied care by the state's health care plan and told the plan could pay for assisted suicide.

Oregon doesn't cover life-prolonging treatment unless there is better than a 5 percent chance it will help the patients live for five more years — but it covers doctor-assisted suicide, defining it as a means of providing comfort, no different from hospice care or pain medication.

"It's chilling when you think about it," said Dr. William Toffler, a professor of family medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. "It absolutely conveys to the patient that continued living isn't worthwhile."

South Africa is still trying to deal with numerous illegal abortionists.

Dr Kato, who at first said he did not do abortions and referred The Herald to other “doctors”, later admitted to offering the service, saying it would cost R600 for someone who was five months pregnant.

He promised the procedure was safe and quick.

“They call it safe abortion. You won‘t feel any pain and you won‘t see any blood.”

Dr. Joshua Hare was recently interviewed about his work with adult stem cells by the Miami Herald.

Q: If embryonic stem cells do turn out to be best, will it be because they are the best at differentiating -- that is, turning into other kinds of cells?

A: Exactly right. That's the theoretical reason they should be best, and there are stats that back that up. An embryonic stem cell is at a state that it can make a whole organism. You can make a whole mouse out of an embryonic stem cell. There are 220 cells in the human body, and embryonic stem cells can make each and every one of them.

The issue I've always worried about is do you want to make every cell in the body. That could increase the risk of cancer. What I like about our approach is that it is targeted. We're trying to heal the heart.

According to a press release from VoteYesforLife, it appears abortions haven't been taking place in South Dakota for the last week.