| British Fertility Society | |||
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News from the BFS Press Office |
In the press |
Watch out for... |
| Visit
http://www.fertility.org.uk/press/email/media06.html
for an online version. See http://www.fertility.org.uk/press/ for previous issues |
I think we are all agreed that little introduction is needed when reviewing the last few month’s media activities in the fertility community. With ESHRE generating an abundance of scientific discoveries and technological breakthroughs - including ones of a sensitive nature and the odd startling revelation - we have been enjoying a steady stream of interest and a busy work schedule. Firstly, the news that Alison’s team at Newcastle successfully cloned the UK’s first human embryo enthused journalists and made impressive headlines in May. Congratulations to Alison and her team. Stories such as “Infertility Time Bomb” stemming from ESHRE and “Baby for ovary transplant woman” also rightly attracted the close attention of the press, and over the next few months all of these stories will undoubtedly continue to trail the news. Please keep communicating your work and opinions to Jo and Tom so that we can ensure that the BFS remains in the forefront of comment and response when it comes to fertility. Don’t forget to take a look at the ‘Watch Out For…’ section below to keep an eye on upcoming events and information of interest. |
| NEWS FROM THE BFS PRESS OFFICE |
| Very well done to Jane Shepley in achieving position of Science Communicator at the British Heart Foundation. Jo Thurston has now taken over as Media Relations Assistant in the BFS Press Office. Please don’t hesitate to contact her on 01454 642244 or jo.thurston@endocrinology.org if you have any queries or information you would like to share. |
| WATCH OUT FOR… |
| Learn
more about the media… The Science Media Centre is offering the British Fertility Society five places on their Introduction to the News Media Event, which will take place on 28th November 2005. This is a great opportunity for any BFS members to find out more about how the media works and to learn about communicating work to the press. If anyone would like to be considered, please contact Jo Thurston ASAP on jo.thurston@endocirnology.org or 01454 642244. It's likely that there will be competition for places, so we may have to make a selection. Unfortunately we won't be able to provide any expenses for this meeting. |
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| Panorama Panorama contacted us in relation to a programme it is hoping to broadcast later this year on BBC1 about sexual health in the UK. Focusing on the link between chlamydia and infertility, this is potentially a very interesting report if it airs. Keep your eyes peeled! |
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| Embryonic
Stem Cells Conference Progress Educational Trust is holding a one-day conference on the ethical, legal and social issues raised by research on adult and embryonic stem cells, taking place on Tuesday 15 November 2005, 10am – 5.30pm in central London. |
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| ASRM
Annual Meeting The American Society for Reproductive Medicine is holding their annual meeting on 15 – 19 November 2005 in Montreal. Many UK journalists will be attending this year, and stories of both a positive and negative nature are likely to arise. For more information go to: http://www.asrm.org/Professionals/Meetings/annualmeeting.html |
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| National
Infertility Day (NID) Further in the future, National Infertility Day is taking place on Saturday 10 June 2006 and is set to help raise awareness of infertility and to make information available to patients. Clinics, companies in the field of infertility, support organisations and more, will be attending. More information can be found at:- http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/nid/mainframe.htm |
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| If you live in London |
We get lots of enquiries from the press looking for people in London to comment on breaking fertility news, or to provide more general advice and information on fertility. Our current list of London contacts is somewhat sparse, so if you are based in the city or its surrounding areas and are willing to take media enquiries every so often, please contact Jo or Tom for a chat. |
| IN THE PRESS |
| May 2005 |
UK scientists clone human embryo (Widely reported, here:
BBC Online 20 May 2005) |
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| Others'
smoking harms IVF success (BBC Online, 25 May 2005) |
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| After-effects of NICE guidelines: Unsuccessful clinics
face closure in IVF treatment clampdown (Net Doctor,
31 May 2005) |
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| June 2005 |
| Environmental toxins reduce fertility in generations to come:
Study (Earth Times, 3 June 2005) Toxins in the atmosphere could reduce fertility not only in people today, but in their offspring generations down the line. http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show /3060.html |
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| A baby for ovary transplant woman (BBC Online, 7 June
2005) A woman who became infertile earlier in life gave birth to a baby girl after receiving healthy ovary tissue from her identical twin sister. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4071312.stm |
| News from ESHRE |
| 'Infertility
time bomb' warning (Widely reported, here:
BBC online 20 June 2005) The warning from prominent UK fertility expert, Bill Ledger, that infertility is set to double in Europe over the next decade, caused a storm in the media world. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4112450.stm |
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| ICSI kids become smarter than average (New Scientist,
21 June 2005) The first study of children conceived by ICSI allayed fears that the procedure is not as safe as standard IVF. http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7554 |
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| Britain
near bottom for IVF in Europe (The
Guardian, 23 June 2005) New figures released showed Britain to be near the bottom of the “European league” and caused IVF experts to criticise the lack of IVF provision. http://www.guardian.co.uk/medicine/story/0,11381,1512387,00.html |
| July 2005 |
| IVF review may limit embryo implants (Daily
Mail, 28 July 2005) The HFEA released a press release introducing a review into whether the UK should only transfer one embryo back to a woman. The Daily Mail reports here how clinics in the UK usually transfer two or even three embryos after IVF treatment. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/thehealthnews.html?in_article_id=357413... |
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| Cloning plan
poses new ethical dilemma (The Guardian, 26
July 2005) The Guardian reports how Ian Wilmut has requested an application from the HFEA to ask healthy women to donate their eggs for cloning research in order to speed up the development of new treatments for disease such as motor neurone disease. http://www.guardian.co.uk/genes/article/0,2763,1536051,00.html |
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| Testicular
cancer patients can have children (Reuters 19 July
2005) Most testicular cancer patients who try to father children after completing their treatment succeed, scientists said Tuesday. http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L18659397.htm |
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