Ethical issues in schizophrenia research

Ethical issues in the field of schizophrenia research have become a focus of intense debate in the past year. The publication of the final report of the National Bioethics Advisory Commission (NBAC) coupled with recent media reports have catapulted these issues into international view. Major questions have been raised about the capacity of individuals with mental illness to consent to participation in research studies and about the conflicts of interest that psychiatric researchers experience. Questions have also been raised about whether it is ethical to ask patients with schizophrenia to participate in studies that can be expected to lead to an increase in psychotic symptoms.