Nationally recognized bioethics expert to speak at VCU on stem-cell research

By Anne Buckley

RICHMOND, Va. -- Nationally recognized bioethics expert Arthur L. Caplan will discuss the morality of stem-cell research at Virginia Commonwealth University on Oct. 11.

Caplan, director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania, will speak at 1 p.m. at the Kontos Auditorium in the Medical Sciences Building, 1217 E. Marshall St., on VCU's MCV campus.

The Special VCU Bioethics Lecture, "What is Immoral (if anything!) about Stem-Cell Research?" is supported by the MCV Foundation's Sanger Fund and Grayson Fund. It is free and open to the public.

"Stem-cell research is a tremendously important issue in this election year," said Francis L. Macrina, Ph.D., director of The Philips Institute of Oral and Craniofacial Molecular Biology at VCU. "Dr. Caplan is among the top medical ethicists in the United States, and his opinions on the debate are both timely and insightful."

Gordon Ginder, director of VCU's Massey Cancer Center, said Caplan's appearance promises to be a direct examination of the issues surrounding stem-cell research.

"Art Caplan has the ability to make people think carefully about all sides of an issue, particularly one that has as much emotion attached to it as stem-cell research," Ginder said.

Caplan, a critic of the Bush Administration's restriction on public funding for stem-cell research, is considered one of the nation�s leading experts on bioethics. He frequently provides commentary on National Public Radio, CNN, MSNBC, The New York Times, Washington Post, and in many other media outlets. He also writes a regular column on bioethics for MSNBC.com.

Caplan is a recipient of the McGovern Medal of the American Medical Writers Association, was named Person of the Year by USA Today in 2001, and was named one of the 50 most influential people in American health care by Modern Health Care magazine.