Twentieth century ethics of human subjects research

Book excerpt: Debates on the ethics of human subjects research meet with an increasing interest both within the medical profession and the broader public. Frequently, historical arguments are used to propagate or attack certain positions within these debates. However, there is a tendency to oversimplify the complexities of the past for present day purposes, and at the same time a lack of awareness of the historical dimension implicit in today's value preferences. Twentieth Century Ethics of Human Subjects Research brings together leading historians of medicine to reconstruct and analyse the history of actual experimental practices, the debates on human subjects research, and the attempts to regulate such research during the twentieth century. The volume addresses cases of medical research in France, Britain, Israel, the United States, and Germany, including the Nazi period; the major developments of ethical debates in these and further national contexts, such as the Soviet Union, the Czech Republic, and Japan. It also explores religious views (Catholic, Jewish) on human experimentation, and the origins and contexts of international codes and declarations. "Volker Roelckes Uberblick uber die Geschichte der Menschenversuche im Dritten Reich sei jedem empfohlen, der sich kurz und pragnant uber dieses dustere Kapitel deutscher Geschichte informieren mochte." FAZ.