A friend of mine sent me an article this morning from an Australian newspaper that was especially creepy to me. Australia is discussing what it’s decision will be in upcoming ESCR issues and the heart of this article deals with the high risk involved for women when having their ovaries stimulated for multiple eggs.
As you may recall in an early blog post about IVF, in the 90’s I went through one round of IVF and was on the drugs this article references. They did put me in a medically induced “post menopausal” state which gave me terrible night sweats and I did get a hyper extended ovary just as the article explained. (I was on Lupron and Pergonal – both injections).
After my egg retrieval, one of my ovaries was hurting me so bad it was painful to walk. I called the Dr. and he told me over the phone that “it was normal”. A week or two later I was still hurting and when I went back in for a checkup they did an ultrasound. The nurse stared at me wide eyed and said “Oh my gosh! Your ovary is the size of a softball!!!!!! Why didn’t you tell us????!!” I quickly told her that I DID tell. Quick as a wink she turned it around and said “YOU knew how much pain you were in and you shouldn’t have accepted that answer when you knew you weren’t feeling normal.”
How would I know what normal was???? (Did I mention that this nurse had recently married the Dr. that performed my egg retrieval?)
Anyhow, nothing was done about it. They gave me strict instructions to be very careful and not do anything strenuous for awhile and the pain did go away.
When I read this article though about medical concerns for the future in these circumstances, I got pretty creeped out. I found another article this morning that said hyper ovary stimulation can also cause kidney damage. So folks, just one more reason why ESCR isn’t in anyone’s best interest. It is not good for women either!!!!!
For all of you who also have undergone IVF, sorry if this scares you but I think it’s better that we pay attention to this stuff. Hope my mother doesn’t read this though.
Here are a few quotes from the article:
Katrina George: Women overlooked in biotech debate
Researchers also need ova and there are hazards involved
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17 August 2006
“Amid all the hype, there has been silence about the interests of one stakeholder: women. Cloning embryos for their stem cells depends on a continuous – and large – supply of ova. This requires high doses of ovulation-stimulating drugs, with side effects such as hot flushes, bloating, moodiness, headaches, weight gain and tiredness.
There is increasing evidence that the super-ovulation process is associated with more serious health risks. Up to 10 per cent of egg donors experience ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome, which can lead to hospitalisation, renal failure, future infertility and even death. Just last week a healthy 37-year-old woman in Britain died after her eggs were obtained for in-vitro fertilisation. Nita Solanki appears to have succumbed to internal bleeding and renal failure. This follows the death of a 33-year-old woman after IVF treatment in Britain last year.
The International Society for Stem Cell Research has issued draft guidelines for egg donation, insisting on informed consent. However, an editorial in the journal Nature is sceptical about the efficacy of informed consent, pointing out what reproductive specialists and women’s health advocates have long argued: that the long-term health effects of these drugs on women are unknown.
Some studies suggest the drugs may be linked to certain cancers that may not appear until women are in their 50s or 60s. Researchers say that we need longitudinal studies. But as Nature journalist Helen Pearson says, “It’s unclear who will drive the effort: private fertility clinics may have little interest in finding out the potential risks of the drugs they use.”
Article taken from http://theaustralian.com.au report
4 responses to “Creepy”
well… it makes sense that when you mess with something God designed to function a certain way but you change it chemically and medically, there are risks and in some cases severe ones. even the best of our medicines carry some level of risk, some we may never fully know this side of heaven. i’m VERY thankful someone is giving this issue attention because women in the usa certainly don’t hear much about these levels of risk! i’m glad you found this article!
i’m FURIOUS for you over what that nurse said. if you thought the pain severe enough to CALL your doctor HHHEEEEEE and HIS STAFF (ie wife) SHOULD have taken it seriously enough to SEE you and express at LEAST concern for potential problems… nevermind that they should have forewarned you of things AHEAD OF TIME!!!!! SHEEEESH! AND THEN TO TRY TO BLAME YOU! GIVE ME A BREAK!
Doni,
I am so sorry for the yucky stuff they put you through! But I know the longing for children that made you try. Tony and I were actually naive when we decided never to try IVF. We said, after the third miscarriage, whatever God has in mind for us, if he doesn’t want us to have a baby then we can live with that. We didn’t know that it would end up being 8 miscarriages. I have polycystic ovaries (already larger than normal, except the left one, I had a tumor removed so now it is smaller) and I know now that I have a higher than normal chance of the ovary problem happening. But, if I hadn’t ended up with my children, especially in the hormonal wake of one of those miscarriages, I probably would have done just about anything if it meant I could have a baby. It feels like selling my soul to the devil, I didn’t do it, but I might have. That longing, that grief, it never goes away, it just is tempered by time. I am sorry for those women who have suffered and died. What an awful and evil process that could kill you, all the while it promises something you desire. People need to be better educated about these proceses before they make the decision. But then those doctors wouldn’t make so much money. Ugh, I think I got on a soap box. Please forgive me.
Love and prayers,
Cari
Just curious, Doni, but do I happen to know this Doctor and Nurse? Sounds like it might be the ones my SIL works for.
Sarah – Bingo 🙂