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We have all heard at least one story of a couple who tried for years to have a child, and then eventually turned to in vitro fertilization (IVF) to make their dream of a family come true. Maybe you even know someone personally, or have been through the experience yourself. One woman had been trying to have a child for 15 years, but it wasn’t until she visited a doctor in the Ukraine who performed a controversial procedure that finally gave her the child she always wanted.
This procedure, known as the “three-parent” procedure, was initially used to treat serious genetic diseases. But the first doctor to use it to help not just one, but 2 infertile couples have a child is named Valeriy Zukin, who works at a private clinic in Kiev.
The procedure involves a process called pronuclear transfer, which inserts the couple's genes into a donor's egg.
Unlike in vitro, this procedure works for women whose embryos have a disorder called embryo arrest. This rare disorder can cause stunts in the growth of the child, or even result in death. The “three-parent” procedure fertilizes the woman’s egg with the partner’s sperm first, then the nucleus is transferred to the donor’s egg, after the egg of the donor has had its nucleus removed. This way, the egg is almost completely formed of the DNA from the couple. Only about .15 of the egg is from the donor’s DNA.
This procedure, though successful, has sparked some controversy, as some believe that a child should only have one mother and one father, thus involving the third person violates ethical norms. This viewpoint mainly comes from the religious community, and Father Feodosiy of the dominant Ukrainian Orthodox Church called the procedure “morally unacceptable”.
However, it is not just those with religious beliefs that have concerns with the “three-parent” procedure. Some scientists worry that it wouldn’t have as high as a success rate within the general population, and it definitely requires heavy monitoring of the infant’s health in their early years before seeing it as a viable solution to infertility or problems with conceiving.
Despite all these concerns, Dr. Zukin believes the procedure can truly work for women from all over the world, and says that the risks are thoroughly explained beforehand. He’s not alone in his thoughts, as there are already women waiting to have the $13,100 procedure.
"I hope that through joint efforts, we will be able to find in a more targeted way those whom this method will help.” he says. The Ukrainian doctor is currently working with China's Shanghai University to learn more about genetic causes of abnormalities in embryo development, as passing on genetic diseases is a major concern of the procedure.
With all the advancements in modern medicine today, there’s no telling what the future may hold, especially when it comes to helping infertile couples create the family they’ve always wanted.
What do you think of this unique procedure?
