Fertility Treatments

Two proposed changes to fertility treatment practices could help infertile cancer sufferers to still have children and also to help treat some rare diseases.

The Advisory Committee on Assisted Reproductive Technology (established under the Human Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2004) is seeking submissions on proposals to

• allow women who have frozen their own eggs before undergoing cancer treatment to now use the eggs to create embryos and, if successful, ultimately give birth
• allow women to screen their embryos so that once the baby is born, umbilical cord stem cells can be used to treat non-inherited disease in close family members

Submissions close on 5 September. Contact 04 496 2414 or email acart@moh.govt.nz.

Note our recent submission on Living Cells technologies application for pig cell transplant trials on 8 humans with type 1 diabetes.

Marilyn Head
Policy Analyst
New Zealand Nurses Organisation
PO Box 2128
Wellington
Tel: 04 494 6372
Fax: 04 382 9993
Email: marilynh@nzno.org.nz