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WHY CAN'T WE LOVE THEM BOTH
by Dr. and Mrs. J.C. Willke
CHAPTER 15
IN VITRO FERTILIZATION
— AND OTHER TECHNOLOGIES —
What is it?
It involves giving a woman drugs to induce ovulation and then
harvesting (collecting) those mature eggs through a laparoscope. The man masturbates to
collect the semen. Then, the semen and ova are mixed in a dish, where fertilization may
occur. Then the tiny, new embryonic human(s) are put into the cavity of the woman’s
uterus with the hope that they will plant and grow.
Is it ethical?
Many RTL groups, especially church-related ones, oppose this as
"unnatural." Other RTL groups limit their official organizational policy to
protecting human life already conceived, and thus have no official position on the
"preliminaries." All, however, totally object to the destruction of any of these
tiny human lives once they exist. All, therefore, condemn the
"pick-of-the-litter" practice. This is when certain "concepti"
(embryos) are discarded (killed) while others are planted.
How many get pregnant?
In 1993 the American Fertility Society reported on an aggregate of
33,000 attempts of "assisted reproductive technology." Remembering that in each
attempt 3 to 5 embryos are planted, the success per attempt (not per embryo) was:
- 24,671 cycles with I.V.F. and 15% deliveries
- 5,452 cycles with GIFT and 26% deliveries
- 2,104 cycles with ZIT and 20% deliveries
- 714 cycles with combinations and 19% deliveries
In addition 4,838 frozen embryo procedures were tried with one of
the above methods and 11% deliveries.
What is ICSI?
It is intracytoplasmic sperm injection, a new
fertility procedure. In it a single sperm is injected directly into the ovum in the
laboratory. Its authors claim a success rate equal to I.V.F. Z. Rosenwaks, JAMA, Dec. 18, 1996
What are these other methods?
GIFT is Gamet Intra-Fallopian Transfer. It brings together the egg
and the husband’s sperm collected from her vagina after the sex act.
LTOT is Low Tubal Ovum Transport. It enables sperm
to bypass a blocked tube. Amer. Fert. Society, Assisted
Reprod. Technology, data from Registry, Fertility & Sterility, vol. 59, no. 5,
May ’93
ZIT is Zygote Intra-Fallopian Transfer. One studydemonstrated only 16% survived transfer. Bustillo et al., "Ovum
Transfer in Infertile Women," JAMA, vol. 251, no. 9, Mar. 2, 1984
What of frozen embryos?
Of embryos frozen on day 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, the number
surviving thawing were 87%, 33%, 43%, 12% and 0 respectively. "The chances for a
surviving frozen-thawed embryo becoming a clinically diagnosed pregnancy was 15%." J. Testait,". . . Preg. rate . . . after embryo freezing,"
Fertility & Sterility, vol. 46, no. 2, p. 268, Aug. ’86
What can I read on this?
The proceedings of the famous frozen embryo case in Marysville,
Tennessee and Professor Jerome Lejeune’s testimony should be required reading. Copies
are available from Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati, 1802 W. Galbraith Rd., Cincinnati,
Ohio 45239.
Are there any long-term bad effects on women who attempt I.V.F.?
Perhaps yes. A study in 1993 at Stanford University
has suggested that women who take the fertility drugs needed for I.V.F. were three times
as likely to develop ovarian cancer. L. Gubernich et
al., Tarnished Miracle, Forbes, Nov. 6, 1995, p. 98
Are
there any problems with I.V.F. babies being abnormal?
Australia is one of the world leaders in this field. The reports are
disturbing.
Multiple pregnancies occur more than 30 times
oftener in I.V.F. than in other pregnancies. These frequently produce low birth weight
prematures who have more problems than full term babies. Major congenital handicaps have
been reported in 2.2% of I.V.F. births compared with 1.5% of normal conceptions. Of 633
embryos conceived invitro by the most successful team, under Dr. Alan Trounson, only 45 or
7% lived to deliver. That is a 93% loss, or 12 out of 13 died. A. Fisher, I.V.F. The Critical Issue, Collins Dove Publishers,
Melbourne, 1989
Specifically, what malformations?
I.V.F. babies have six times the national average
for congenital cardiac transposition and five times as many spina bifida. Stillbirths and
deaths in the infant’s first three months after delivery are more than three times
the national average. J. Fleming, S. Cross Bio-Ethics
Institute, from Natl. Perinatal Statis. Unit, Sidney U., Autumn 1989
Where is all this new technology going?
No one knows, but Canada is trying to set limits by
calling for a voluntary moratorium and refusing federal funding for: "sex selection
for non-medical reasons; commercial pre-conception or surrogacy arrangements; buying and
selling of eggs, sperm, and embryos; egg donation in exchange for invitro fertilisation
services; germ-line genetic alteration; ectogenesis; human embryo cloning; the creation of
animal- human hybrids; and the retrieval of eggs from fetuses and cadavers for purposes of
donation, fertilisation, or research." D. Marleau,
"Canada Calls for Moratorium on IVF Technologies," The Lancet, vol. 346,
Aug. 5, 1995, p. 367
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