Published on 09 July 2012 Hits: 79

ROME: The number of babies born as a result of assisted reproduction technologies (ART) has reached an estimated total of 5 million, according to information presented at the 28th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (Eshre), which opened on July 1, in Istanbul, Turkey.

According to the July 2 press release from Eshre the estimate comes from Icmart (International Committee for Monitoring Assisted Reproductive Technologies) and was based on the number of In Vitro Fertilizations (IVF) and Iintracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) treatment cycles recorded worldwide up to 2008 with projections added for the following three years.

Dr. David Adamson, of Fertility Physicians of Northern California, USA, and chairman of Icmart, said about 1.5 million ART cycles are now performed globally each year, producing around 350,000 babies.

The news came shortly after the death of Lesley Brown, 64, who lived in Bristol, England, and made history in July 1978 when her daughter Louise was the first child to be born as the result of IVF treatment.

Lesley Brown had two daughters, Louise and Natalie, both born following IVF treatment, the BBC reported June 20.

In reaction to the latest news on IVF babies Anthony Ozimic, communications director for the English Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, said that What is largely overlooked is that many millions more embryonic children have been killed following IVF, a quality-controlled process which is also intrinsically abusive of human beings.

If the countless millions of pounds given to IVF had been given to the much-more successful ethical alternatives, many more children would have been born, he added.

Health risks In a July 3 press release Irelands Iona Institute pointed out that a recent Australian study has revealed serious health risks for those using IVF.

An Australian study, published in the journal Fertility and Sterility, found that women who went through the IVF procedure around their 24th birthday were found to have a 56 percent greater chance of developing breast cancer than those in the same age group who went through treatments without IVF.

Excerpt from:
The hidden costs of reproductive technology