Whose ethics govern global health research?

The study provoked immediate and widespread outrage across the global research community and is now paused, pending further ethical review¹. Many experts rightly described the protocol as unconscionable, drawing comparisons to historical examples of unethical research that have shaped modern protections for human research participants. While global health research has made important advances in ethical oversight and regulatory frameworks, this episode is a sobering reminder that safeguards are only as strong as the willingness to enforce them, and that ethical backsliding remains possible even today.