The successful achievement of pregnancies following pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) was first reported in April 1990. The technology is often used for patients who are at substantial risk of conceiving a pregnancy affected by a known genetic disorder, however from this technology other more controversial uses have arisen such as HLA typing to save the life of a sibling, gender selection for social reasons, the prevention of late onset diseases, or the prevention of diseases which may be genetically predisposed to developing such as breast cancer. The technology surrounding PGD is constantly developing, giving rise to new and unexpected consequences that create fresh ethical and legal dilemmas.

Featuring internationally recognized experts in the field, this book critically explores the regulation of PGD and the broader legal and ethical issues associated with it. It looks at the regulatory situation in a number of jurisdictions including New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom, but it also explores a number of themes of wide significance including a historical consideration of PGD and its part in the creation of the "genetic embryo" as a political tool, the over regulation of PGD and the ethical difficulties in handling additional unexpected medical information yielded by new technologies. This book will be of particular interest to academics and students of law, medicine and ethics


1. Introduction, Sheila McLean 2. PGD and the making of the genetic embryo' as a political tool: A historical analysis, Anastasia A Theodosiou and Martin H Johnson 3. Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis: Born but not made, Peter Braude 4. The Weak Moral Basis for Strong Regulation of Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD), Tom Campbell and Laura Cabrera 5. Cartwright Calamities and Frankenstein Monsters: The Regulation of Reproduction in New Zealand, Jeanne Snelling 6. The State in Action - An Insider View of How the State Regulates the Use of PGD in New Zealand, Mark Henaghan 7. Regulatory legitimacy in embryo research: The case of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Don Chalmers 8. Regulating reproduction in Australia: where is the woman in this labyrinth?, Kerry Petersen 9. The Welfare of the Child Principle and the Use of PGD under the HFEA 1990 (as amended), Sarah Elliston 10. Statutory regulation of PGD: unintended consequences and future challenges, Emily Jackson 11. Conclusion, Sheila McLean