Birth of first UK baby screened for genetic breast cancer

The first baby to be screened for alterations in the breast cancer-causing gene, BRCA1, was born last week. The child was at risk from inheriting the gene from her father, who has women in three generations of his family who have been diagnosed with breast caner in their twenties as a result of inheriting the [...]

Freezing improves DNA integrity

Gamete cryopreservation could help improve the fertility of men whose spermatozoa show a high level of prefreeze DNA fragmentation, study findings indicate.
 Laura Thomson (Fertility First, Hurstville, Australia) and co-authors note potential cryoinjury of sperm from subfertile men is an issue of primary concern “considering that subfertile men form a very large proportion of the men [...]

Equal access to IVF for lesbian couples and single women

New laws that grant lesbian couples and single women equal access to IVF have been passed by MPs voting in Victoria’s Parliament. The Assisted Reproductive Treatment bill was approved by 47 votes to 34, in a three day debate that lasted in the early hours. It will now be debated in the Upper House before [...]

Widow claims human right to use dead husband’s sperm

 
The UK’s High Court has ruled that it may have been unlawful for a widow to have removed her dead husband’s sperm. Despite UK law requiring valid written consent for the storage and use of sperm, the 42-year-old widow obtained emergency Court permission to have sperm collected from her 31-year-old husband’s body hours after he [...]

Delaying motherhood and defying nature

The average age of women seeking fertility help in Australia has increased from 35.2 years old in 2002 to 35.6 years old in 2006, according to a report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). The report showed that record numbers of women over 40 were undergoing fertility treatment – rising from 14.3 [...]

Fertility laws in UK drop “need for a father” in infertility treatment

Single women and lesbian couples will be able to seek fertility treatment without having to consider a father for their children. In May this year, the House of Commons in UK has rejected a proposed amendment to the new Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFE) Bill, requiring fertility clinics to consider the ‘need for a father’ [...]

Septuplet joy for Egyptian couple

An Egyptian woman has given birth to seven babies in the northern city of Alexandria, doctors said. The mother, named as 27-year-old Ghazala Khamis, is said to be well and the septuplets – four boys and three girls – are reported to be stable. The babies are said to weigh between 1.45 and 2.8kg (3-6lb); [...]

UK survey reveals that three-quarters of infertile patients would consider treatment abroad

An overwhelming majority of infertility patients in the UK said they would contemplate travelling abroad for fertility treatment, according to the first comprehensive study on the strength and motivations behind the fertility tourism industry. Among the 339 infertile patients who responded to an online poll conducted by Infertility Network UK, 76 per cent stated they [...]

No IVF please, we’re British

An overwhelming majority of infertility patients in the UK said they would contemplate travelling abroad for fertility treatment, according to the first comprehensive study on the strength and motivations behind the fertility tourism industry. Among the 339 infertile patients who responded to an online poll conducted by Infertility Network UK, 76 per cent stated they [...]

Posthumous Sperm-Battle

A legal fight by a UK woman to have a child using sperm taken from her husband after his death is underway. The case highlights the need for regulatory clarity on the issue, which first came to prominence in 1995 when Diane Blood won the right to conceive using sperm from her comatose spouse.
Doctors were [...]