April 2016 a male embryo was implanted into Jessica Allen’s uterus to begin the process of being a surrogate mother. Jessica received $30,000 plus expenses, but was most excited about the opportunity to help another woman who was unable to have children. Jessica got matched up with a couple from China, where it is illegal to use surrogates.
Seven weeks into the pregnancy there was unexpected news, there was a second baby. The doctor explained there is a very small chance the embryo could have split, but that there still was a chance, meaning Jessica was now a surrogate for twins. She received additional $5,000 for the second child. The babies were delivered on December 12, 2016. Jessica had seen a picture of them and had noticed that one of the babies had much more fair skin than the other. A month later, a DNA test was taken and confirmed that the second baby was not a twin, but Jessica and her husband’s biological son.Superfetation is suspected to have occurred which is where a mother becomes pregnant when she is already pregnant.
Jessica was able to reunite her biological son with her family. This story had many ethical issues. Like a similar question we were asked in class about is it ethical for a doctor to go out of the country to perform a surgery that is not legal in their home country? My similar question would be, is it legal for them to match up with a family from China where this is known not to be legal? There could be many legal issues, disagreements, and difficult situations that occur since it took place in different country than where the mother and father are from.
Another ethical issue is if the surrogate mother was paid extra for the second child how is it legal that Jessica should get her biological child back, there must have been some documentation about the extra fee for the second child and Jessica knowing she would be giving him up. The second baby is biologically hers but ethically, it would be hard to determine who the baby should go to.
As we have talked in class, the ethics behind IVF is very tricky. There is still a lot to figure out on the science side of things and on the legal side of things.
Scutti, S. (2017, November 03). Surrogate mom delivers two babies, one her own. Retrieved November 14, 2017, from http://www.cnn.com/2017/11/03/health/surrogate-mom- two-babies/index.html
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteI read the article on cnn.com and it is extremely interesting along with your Blog Post! I did not know that superfetation was possible so this was news to me. There are quite a few ethical issues with this case such as the couple being from China where the use of surrogates is illegal and the fact that the other child was biologically Jessica's and her husbands and not the other parents. Regarding the first ethical issue, I find it unfortunate that the use of surrogates is illegal in China because I believe that every woman should be given the chance to become a mother even if biologically she is not able to. I personally don't see a problem with this though since it is not creating harm but I do wonder about the Doctor who allowed this to happen in the US. If they knew that the parents who were receiving the child were from China where it is illegal why did they agree to this? I believe that Doctors should be held to a higher standard. As for the second child biologically being Jessica's, I do believe that it should have been given back to her and her husband. In the article it does state that there was some difficulty getting the baby back to them and I wonder if it had to do with the $5,000 that was paid to her. Even though it doesn't say, I do hope that the money was returned since the other family did not keep that child.
I agree with you, Amanda! IVF is tricky in a sense that it can sometimes lead to multiple conceptions due to the number of embryos implanted. Back in the days, Nadya Suleman, known as the "Octomom" became famous after giving birth to octuplets. The physician who treated her ended up losing his medical license due to the controversy of negligence. However, this case was interesting to read. I thought that once a woman is pregnant, the body senses it and stops releasing eggs or ovulating. I guess in her case, it was different. That makes me wonder how many superfetation cases are out there and if they ever find out. Although, the surrogate was able to get her biological son back, it would be difficult in cases where the parents are adamant on keeping the child even though the DNA evidence says so. This would have lead to difficult nasty legal battles, especially if its in different countries where laws are not the same. That was probably why the process was difficult to get the child back. There must have been some hesitation initially.
ReplyDeleteAlong with Taylor and Prava, I did not think that superfetation was a reality. I always thought that once fertilization took place, it gave the body a signal to prevent other fertilizations from taking place. I guess this goes to show you how science and nature are almost never a black and white situation. But what I really found interesting is when you brought up the question pertaining to the ethics: “is it legal for them to match up with a family from China where this is known not to be legal?”
ReplyDeleteOn the surface, I thought we should avoid this type of situation because if there were to be a problem, then the legal ramifications alone would be detrimental. However, as I thought more about it, this scenario reminded me of medical tourism, which is where people travel to another country to receive medical, dental, and/or surgical care. There is a lot to unpack here! There are many benefits and consequences of this type of healthcare. For instance, there is a potential for communication and/or a cultural barrier to exist between the physician and the patient. This leads to experiences in poor quality of care and a decline in the patient’s quality of life. Furthermore, the two countries’ different views on legal policy, medical procedure, ethics and values may conflict and bring into question whose authority reigns over the patient. Overall, there is ambiguity over how medical tourism should be developed and regulated which has the potential to lead to chaos and questions over who upholds the legal responsibility. On the other hand, medical tourism is considered a necessity. It is a way for people to access high quality, but affordable care, that they do not receive in their native country. I may be conflating the two situations, but I think that as long as both parties understand and consent to the services and its inherent risks (and follow policy and procedure, if there is a fallout) then I do not think it is ethically wrong to provide, or accept, services from another country.