Too late for nuchal scan

[Lilly999]

Hi everyone,

so today I had my first scan at the hospital. I was supposed to be 13 weeks and 5 days, but they said I already measured 14 weeks and 5 days and that they can't check for Downs Syndrome in the test. They booked me in for a blood test, but that's only going to be in two weeks time.

I feel so extremely bad about it, in two weeks time the baby is going to be even more advanced and I just don't have the heart to terminate the pregnancy at such a late stage should anything come up.

We checked for the private NIPT test, and the cheapest one is 395 pounds in our area and the results also take 5 working days. 😳

The reason why my first scan was so late is because they forgot to send me a letter to inform me about my first midwife appointment. So I missed my first midwife appointment and consequently it took longer to be referred to the hospital. 🙁

Is there anything I can do or anywhere I can go to have a quick check?

We don't mind paying, but 400 pounds is going to put a massive dent in our pocket.

Thanks for any advice xx

Hey @Lilly999 I was in the exact same position today. Supposed to be 13 weeks 4 days and measured 14 weeks 2 days. I was very annoyed as I’d been phoning them for weeks saying I had no appointment date.
Anyway, I like you am now faced with spending £400 for peace of mind as unfortunately I don’t think there’s really another option.
Obviously we can have the quad test in 2 weeks time but that’s less accurate and only tests for Down’s Syndrome. It’s frustrating that we got missed but I can’t find an alternative to the NIPT that will give us the answers we want in the quickest amount of time.
Whether you’re willing to wait for just the quad test to have more information is a difficult decision. Otherwise I’d say go for the NIPT. It’s such a lot of money but at least you can take back control of everything.
Good luck!

@Pizzaandsushi

It's crap, isn't it? I also find 5 days turn around time for 400 pounds quite poor.

It's so expensive. We probably have to bite the bullet though. There's no other option.

Wish you the best of luck as well. Sorry you were treated poorly by the NHS, too.

@Lilly999 would you terminate if your baby came back as a high chance of downs??

Just to comment on the turn around time, it’s a complex test that involves a lot of laboratory work, and then results have to be checked before being given to patients. I get that it seems a long time, but it’s not actually possible to do the work a lot quicker!

[quote grapestar]@Lilly999 would you terminate if your baby came back as a high chance of downs?? [/quote]
OP is quite clear that that would be the consideration 'should anything come up' which is perfectly valid.

@Lilly999 I just thought I’d attach this photo about NHS and NIPT so you have all the information. You’d still have to wait until you got the quad test and even then it looks like they only offer you the NIPT if you’re high risk but if you really don’t want to spend £400 it could be an option.
For us, we just want all the information so we can prepare, so waiting a couple more weeks, although makes me anxious, is maybe doable. However if you think that’s not for you (completely acceptable) an extra few weeks is probably too late for you to make any decisions.

I'm in a similar position as they couldn't get the measurement at my 12 week scan (which was at 12 weeks) as the baby was turned to the side and kept moving into different turned to the side positions. I've got the quad test booked next week, and what I've decided is to wait and see what that says. If I come back as higher risk then the NHS will pay for the NIPT, but if it's lower risk then I will pay for NIPT. I don't think that a higher risk result of the NIPT (and then subsequent amnio) would make me choose a termination unless the result showed Edward's or Pataus, but I wouldn't want a downs diagnosis to be something that I discovered after my baby is born as I'd like to be prepared if possible.