Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
News
Original poster

Woman Loses Fight to Use Her Frozen Embryos

170 replies

expatinscotland · 07/03/2006 11:01

This woman had her ovaries removed due to ovarian cancer. She had eggs fertilised w/her former partner's sperm. They were together when she had them fertilised, of course, w/his permission. Then he w/drew that permission.

Whaddya think?

\link{http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4779876.stm\woman loses fight}

OP posts:
carla · 07/03/2006 14:11

But from her point of view, the emotional strain of having gone through all that treatment, splitting up with her partner, only to discover her dreams are shattered by this ruling must be, well, awful, I would have thought.

wannaBe1974 · 07/03/2006 14:11

I think that if the situation had been reversed and he was the one wanting to use the embrios with a surrogat partner those who are currently fighting Natallie Evans' corner would be absolutely outraged. It seems that women's rights seem to take over the man's rights in this case.

carla · 07/03/2006 14:12

I wonder how much you can hate someone to not let this go ahead?

pashmina · 07/03/2006 14:13

so what if he is in a different relationship? since when did being a sperm donor (which is all he would be) make hiom have to be a father?

cod · 07/03/2006 14:13

well god
he is a tosser
so what if he has mroe than one kid
any new partner of his coudl feel for her

donnie · 07/03/2006 14:16

yeah, who needs men anyway?
get rid of dads altogether and let us create a nation of single parent children who will never know what it is to have a father.

wannaBe1974 · 07/03/2006 14:16

but maybe he doesn't wish to be a sperm doner. And actually the law has now changed and the children of sperm doners are now able to trace their biological parents, so i can totally understand why he wouldn't want this to go ahead.

And why does it have to be about hatred. If you split with someone and you had frozen embrios with this person and they had no chance of fathering a child can you seriously say you'd be prepared for another woman to carry your biological child, give it to your now ex-partner to bring up and you would be happy to be absolved of all responsibility for it?

cod · 07/03/2006 14:17

yes fom all the women who have cancer adn have frozen fertlised embyos
ther are MILLIONS of htem donnie

bran · 07/03/2006 14:17

I think it's a little unfair to criticise the xp for not allowing her to use the embryos. I can think of lots of reasons why a man wouldn't be happy with someone else bringing up his child. After all if he wanted to have the embryos implanted into a surrogate or new partner and the woman refused permission I wouldn't necessarily think she was lacking in compassion.

carla · 07/03/2006 14:17

donnie, lots of children don't have a father.

Through no fault of their own.

donnie · 07/03/2006 14:18

precisely Carla.

desperateSCOUSEwife · 07/03/2006 14:18

he could see her as a bunny boiler for all we know

carla · 07/03/2006 14:19

bran, it seems like he's quite happy to have them destroyed, though.

turniphead · 07/03/2006 14:20

I think he's perfectly entitled to withdraw his consent, whilst at the same understanding her frustration.

Just think of the minefield though if she were allowed to go ahead.

A successful pregnancy and birth / 14 years later child wants to find father / finds out father didn't want his/her conception - devastation all round

pashmina · 07/03/2006 14:20

he is not asking for the embroyos to be used by any new partner of his.
she is asking to use them for her last chance to have her own baby.

she is not asking for him to be a Dad.
yes sperm donors can now be traced, but it is up to them if they want any contact.

pashmina · 07/03/2006 14:23

I would add that if a new partner of his needed IVF with his sperm, she would be unlikely to choose to use his ex's embroyo, and would prefer to use a donor egg. She would have top be pretty wierd to want to use it, so I don't think that is a valid arguement.

carla · 07/03/2006 14:23

turnip, isn't that what happens all the time, though? Unfortunate, but I think it's true.

wannaBe1974 · 07/03/2006 14:23

no he isn't, but I think that the point was that if he was then people wouldn't be so sympathetic. And yes he could refuse contact, but what will that do to the child. Let's bear in mind that this child will most likely be known, this case has been so much in the media that the media would follow this child from afar all through its life, just waiting for the time when he/she decided to trace his/her biological father.

Tinker · 07/03/2006 14:23

It's not about him having a child already and then being in a new relationship. It's about him being forced to have one that doesn't yet exist whilst he may (or may not) be in a new relationship. I would be repulsed if I were him.

Can't even see that there's a case to argue here except sentiment - she wants one therefore she shoudl have one. Madness.

Piffle · 07/03/2006 14:24

plus the small mention that they both had signed the opt out agreement should either pary change their minds...

carla · 07/03/2006 14:24

wannabe, people said that about Louise Brown ....

Piffle · 07/03/2006 14:26

Mr Johnstone said he would feel morally obligated to be a good father - hence his dilemma
we cannot possibly second guess the reasons they broke up - it could be something that makes him very set on having a child with her now.
perhaps had it been a different break up, two different people they may have been able to sort this out. No doubt it will come out as tabloid tattle any day soon...

ruty · 07/03/2006 14:26

i can see what people are saying but just re the last point turnip, if the child was brought up to know it was loved i don't think the discovery that the father didn't want it would neccessarily ruin its life. I mean there are plently of children who find out their fathers left when the mother was pregnant, etc, and it depends on how loved they feel growing up with regards to how they cope with it. my dad's fatehr left his mum when my dad was three - he felt very rejected, but he had his mum's unwavering love and he got thru it.

wannaBe1974 · 07/03/2006 14:27

and louise brown is still followed by the media. I saw her on discovery health only a couple of months ago

pashmina · 07/03/2006 14:27

isn't there a difference to being a dad, and "fathering" a child?

Swipe left for the next trending thread