Nature and Validity of Contracts in Stem Cell Therapeutic Research

One of the most influential scientific approaches in the twentieth century has been discovering stem cells and their therapeutic effectiveness. On the one hand, countless diseases are considered incurable through valid scientific treatments and on the other hand, the hope for new treatments has been considered a promotor of the medical studies in research centers. Throughout such research pieces, the subject is the patient himself and since all available treatments have been futile for him, attempts are being made to treat him experimentally by implementing unconventional strategies, to see whether there might be a cure for him. The treatment contract is of great significance as it has been admitted as a joint connecting medicine and rights. In cases where the limits and extent of liability are disputed due to possible ambiguities of laws; basically, the heart of the legal relationship of medical professionals with their patients is the contract concluded between them. First, explaining the legal nature of the treatment contract and then using the selected contractchr('39')s general and specific rules will be beneficial in this regard. Meantime, since stem cell research around the world is one of the new and unprecedented therapies and can have short-term and long-term side effects, a principled agreement between the medical team and human trials for medical research will eliminate any vaguenesses between both sides. Although adherence to medical criteria and ethical obligations are not embedded in the contractschr('39') scope, it seems that the physicianchr('39')s liability, if the patient has referred to him with his consent, eliminates many of the problems between them and avoids possible legal disputes. Therefore, accurate knowledge of such a contract, both formally and substantively and conditions of its accuracy and validity, seems inevitable. Please cite this article as: Jokar SM, Ahmad Khan Beygi K, Gharibpoor M. Nature and Validity of Contracts in Stem Cell Therapeutic Research. Iran J Med Law 2020; 14(54): 33-63.