Working in the field of infertility, it is always eye opening and interesting to learn more about the laws and regulations around infertility treatment all over the world. There are differences for almost every treatment plan associated with infertility. Simple decisions such as whether to freeze your eggs for future use may not be so simple from a legal perspective in some countries. Looking at countries where religious laws and regulations are valued more than basic human rights, it is apparent that not everyone has the benefit of choosing their own treatment pathways.
This issue was brought to my attention when I came across a story regarding egg freezing. A young woman was able to have her eggs frozen for fertility preservation and future use in Egypt. Once I looked into her story I realized that this was quite a taboo topic in Egypt and many other Islamic countries. In some countries that enforce religious laws, infertility treatment options are more limited than in other parts of the world. Egg freezing has recently been deemed acceptable in Islam if followed through by certain guidelines. First, the frozen eggs should only be used in marriage and be fertilized by the husband's sperm. If the marriage has resulted in a divorce or death, the embryos can not be used. Second, the eggs should be kept in highly safe places under strict control. Third, the fertilized eggs can not be transferred into another woman's uterus. Also, the freezing procedure should not negatively affect the egg to prevent birth defects. Just recently, in April 2019, the UAE also began to allow egg, sperm and embryo freezing as long as it is not used for surrogacy or donation. To us, these choices seem like ones we should be able to make on our own. To people living in these countries, it may not be so easy.
Living in countries where we have the ability to choose the course of our treatments, we take this for granted. Most of us are aware of people struggling around the world with basic human needs but not a lot of us are aware of the fact that people struggle every day to make basic health decisions; such as, how they want to proceed with their infertility treatments. Of course, it is great to hear that these laws are being changed and moving towards more of a personal choice basis. However, there is still plenty of room for growth. Currently, there are countries that do not allow for donation, surrogacy, or pre-implantation genetic testing of embryos. It is even harder for the LGBTQ community to receive any treatment in certain countries. The important thing here is that once a patient is unable to conceive, they want to have all of the possible options available to them. These decisions are not easy to make in the first place, let alone making the decision and being told that it is not legally possible. This can resort to people seeking treatment in other countries which can be much more expensive and add to the emotional burden of the whole process. That is, if the patient is able to travel to another country. If they can not, then they may never be able to receive the treatment they have chosen. It is so important to make these treatments accessible to everyone, anywhere in the world.
Now, there may be circumstances where ethically it is not warranted to complete a certain course of treatment. For example, if a couple wants to undergo sex selection just on the basis of discrimination against a certain sex. This may be a case where sex selection is not offered to them. However, a couple may want to proceed with sex selection due to a hereditary disease that only affects one sex. In this case, sex selection may be deemed reasonable. As you can see, each case is different and the treatment options offered should suit that specific patient. The best possible way to deal with infertility treatments would be to choose the right plan for a specific patient while taking all aspects into account. It is not black and white and it is definitely not fair to take away a person's chance at parenthood because of a widely enforced law. Don't get me wrong, if a person chooses to opt out of certain treatment options because of their own beliefs that is perfectly respectable. However, it should be the couple's decision and not a law enforced on everyone in that country. Advances are being made in the field which could change the course of infertility treatment all together. It would be a shame not to offer the best possible options to everyone.
Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions, concerns or comments.
