Stonewall has launched this week 'A Guide for Gay Dads', giving gay men practical advice in plain English on how to become a dad.
The guide is the brother publication to Pregnant Pause, released earlier this year. It guides prospective gay dads through all their options including adoption, co-parenting, surrogacy, sperm donation and fostering. It includes a handy glossary and spells out all the recent legal changes in plain English to help demystify the process.
Ben Summerskill, Stonewall Chief Executive, said: ‘There’s never been a better time for gay men to start a family in Britain. The law is now on their side. And this comprehensive new guide – the first of its kind specifically aimed at gay men – outlines all options, with handy tips and places to go for further support. We hope it’ll convince some gay men who might have otherwise written off the prospect of raising children to re-consider.’
Stonewall we have worked hard to ensure that gay people can have and raise children like everyone else. While our lobbying has helped changed the law – allowing gay couples to adopt, removing barriers to fertility treatment for lesbians and outlawing discrimination in goods and services, including organisations offering social and family services – there is still lots to do.
Not only does the 'Guide for Gay Dads' give vitally useful legal advice on what parenting rights you may have in different situations but it gives you an overview of what you can expect from each route to becoming a dad. Given the recent changes to the law it is a must-read for any gay men considering starting a family.
Cambridge University research for Stonewall published earlier this year demonstrated how children with same-sex parents have the exact same quality of upbringing as other children. Alice, 7, who was interviewed for the research said: ‘I’ve got two parents who love me. It doesn’t matter if they’re a boy or a girl.’
Stonewall’s YouTube channel www.youtube.com/stonewalluk currently includes an interview with Jess Sweeney, 17, whose dad is gay. She told us: ‘Every girl wants a gay best friend, but mine is my dad, too.’
If you would like a free hardcopy of the guide, email Stonewall at info@stonewall.org.uk
or Click here to download A Guide for Gay Dads
It’s the latest in a programme of recent work to ensure lesbian and gay people can start families and bring up children free from homophobia. Earlier this year Stonewall published their groundbreaking (Different Families) research which for the first time allowed the overwhelmingly illuminating voices of children with gay parents to be heard and last year they published (Pregnant Pause), a guide for lesbians on how to get pregnant.
Read more about the guide at www.stonewall.org.uk
For more information about gay parenting, becoming a sperm donor or co-parenting visit www.prideangel.com
To read more go to http://bit.ly/94M2AZ
Saturday 30 October 2010
Thursday 28 October 2010
Donating sperm - Why do men choose to donate?
It takes just minutes, but the emotional consequences of donating sperm can last for years. So what makes men do it? By Alice-Azania Jarvis, The Independent.
Sperm is a hot commodity in 21st-century Britain. Women will travel miles to find it and pay thousands to access it. Obtaining a donation from the European Sperm Bank – which is to say pursuing the standard, NHS-endorsed option of licensed donation – can cost upwards of £2,500. That's before diagnostic testing, treatment costs, and "pregnancy slot" bookings are taken into account. That's £2,500 for three, thumb-sized vials of frozen semen – and it might not be enough.
Treatment could be unsuccessful, at least the first time around. It might be a one-off, or it might a recurring problem. It might not even be possible to buy a donation. Demand for those frozen vials dwarfs availability, and the result is a system in which eligibility is strictly regulated.
Mark Jackson first learned of the sperm shortage six years ago. Sitting at his computer, reading news of the Boxing Day tsunami, he was made aware of his own mortality. “I realised that you could be wiped off the earth without having left any impact,” he reflects. “My eye was caught by a ticker running across the screen. It said that there was a shortage of gamete donations. I didn’t even know what that was, but I clicked on the link. I realised that maybe I could make a difference after all.”
Since then, his sperm has been used to “help” two families and Jackson has become a trustee of the National Gamete Donation Trust (NGDT). He is one of almost 500 registered donors in the UK, sharing his sperm via the 138 licensed clinics around the country. In 2005, when British law changed to allow donors’ offspring to learn, on turning 18, the identity of their father, that number was widely predicted to drop off. Suddenly, the prospect was raised of biological sons or daughters rocking up on donors’ doorsteps. It’s a scenario soon to be played out on the big screen, thanks to US comedy The Kids Are All Right, and it would be enough – sceptics reasoned – to turn many men off their trips to the fertility clinic.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/bP4xJ2
Sperm is a hot commodity in 21st-century Britain. Women will travel miles to find it and pay thousands to access it. Obtaining a donation from the European Sperm Bank – which is to say pursuing the standard, NHS-endorsed option of licensed donation – can cost upwards of £2,500. That's before diagnostic testing, treatment costs, and "pregnancy slot" bookings are taken into account. That's £2,500 for three, thumb-sized vials of frozen semen – and it might not be enough.
Treatment could be unsuccessful, at least the first time around. It might be a one-off, or it might a recurring problem. It might not even be possible to buy a donation. Demand for those frozen vials dwarfs availability, and the result is a system in which eligibility is strictly regulated.
Mark Jackson first learned of the sperm shortage six years ago. Sitting at his computer, reading news of the Boxing Day tsunami, he was made aware of his own mortality. “I realised that you could be wiped off the earth without having left any impact,” he reflects. “My eye was caught by a ticker running across the screen. It said that there was a shortage of gamete donations. I didn’t even know what that was, but I clicked on the link. I realised that maybe I could make a difference after all.”
Since then, his sperm has been used to “help” two families and Jackson has become a trustee of the National Gamete Donation Trust (NGDT). He is one of almost 500 registered donors in the UK, sharing his sperm via the 138 licensed clinics around the country. In 2005, when British law changed to allow donors’ offspring to learn, on turning 18, the identity of their father, that number was widely predicted to drop off. Suddenly, the prospect was raised of biological sons or daughters rocking up on donors’ doorsteps. It’s a scenario soon to be played out on the big screen, thanks to US comedy The Kids Are All Right, and it would be enough – sceptics reasoned – to turn many men off their trips to the fertility clinic.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/bP4xJ2
Tuesday 26 October 2010
Sperm and egg donors should be paid more, experts claim
Two experts have indicated their support for paying sperm and egg donors more money. Two panelists in a debate last Wednesday, organised by the Progress Educational Trust in partnership with the Royal Society of Medicine, on the ethics of egg donation and payment said in the press they want to raise the maximum payment above today's £250 per cycle.
Speaking to the Guardian, Tony Rutherford, chairman of the British Fertility Society, said about egg donation: '£1,500 seems to be reasonable compensation for the physical rigours that these women need to undergo. They need to have injections of drugs, invasive internal scans and then a small operative procedure to collect the eggs. They may also possibly need to have time off work to attend appointments spread over three to four weeks'.
Mr Rutherford said the fees paid should match the financial benefit gained by those taking part in egg-sharing schemes, where a woman donates some of her eggs in return for free or cheaper fertility treatment. He added: 'Compensation should not be so high that it acts as a financial inducement'.
The debate also extended to payment to sperm donors - also subject to the £250 cap. Laura Witjens, chairwoman of the National Gamete Donation Trust, wrote in a BBC news health column: 'Sperm donors deserve at least the same payment if not more than egg donors do'. She argued the process they go through is difficult, lengthy and requires a serious commitment.
The debate was held as the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) prepares to launch a public consultation on the donation of eggs, sperm and embryos in January 2011, which will look at issues including payment.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9A62Xs
Speaking to the Guardian, Tony Rutherford, chairman of the British Fertility Society, said about egg donation: '£1,500 seems to be reasonable compensation for the physical rigours that these women need to undergo. They need to have injections of drugs, invasive internal scans and then a small operative procedure to collect the eggs. They may also possibly need to have time off work to attend appointments spread over three to four weeks'.
Mr Rutherford said the fees paid should match the financial benefit gained by those taking part in egg-sharing schemes, where a woman donates some of her eggs in return for free or cheaper fertility treatment. He added: 'Compensation should not be so high that it acts as a financial inducement'.
The debate also extended to payment to sperm donors - also subject to the £250 cap. Laura Witjens, chairwoman of the National Gamete Donation Trust, wrote in a BBC news health column: 'Sperm donors deserve at least the same payment if not more than egg donors do'. She argued the process they go through is difficult, lengthy and requires a serious commitment.
The debate was held as the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) prepares to launch a public consultation on the donation of eggs, sperm and embryos in January 2011, which will look at issues including payment.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9A62Xs
Sunday 24 October 2010
Becoming a parent for the gay community 'The Alternative Families Show'
The first ever event aiming to demystify the process of becoming a parent for the gay community and single people, ‘The Alternative Families Show’ was held yesterday, Saturday 23rd October 2010, within the Grand Connaught rooms, London. The show was organised by Littlepink, social network and Square Peg Media, in partnership with Stonewall, the gay, lesbian and bisexual charity. Square Peg Media is the publisher of G3 magazine, Out in the City magazine and Proud magazine.
The organisers said ‘We are really pleased with the response we have had, with over a thousand people attending. It has been a huge success and is something we will definitely be continuing to run next year’
The event brought expert advisors together from fertility clinics, adoption and fostering agencies to co-parenting websites to include Pride Angel which is now the leading connection service for gay, lesbian, single and infertile couples wishing to find known sperm donors and co-parents.
Pride Angel said ‘It was fantastic to hear all the positive comments about our service. Many lesbian women really liked the idea of having a ‘dad’ involved in their children’s lives. Many gay couples who had previously believed that surrogacy or adoption was the only method of starting a family, where extremely interested in potential co-parenting arrangements‘.
The show also ran several seminars throughout the day giving advice about fostering and adoption, using a known sperm donor, the legal side of co-parenting, using nutrition to boost fertility and help prevent miscarriage, surrogacy – the law and choosing surrogacy abroad. Stonewall presented a seminar regarding children from different families, about gay families and schools. Lastly but not least, Littlepink, a network for same sex parents and children spoke about the importance of support networks and the value behind a community.
For more information about parenting options for lesbian, gay, single and infertile couple visit www.prideangel.com
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9hJgYG
The organisers said ‘We are really pleased with the response we have had, with over a thousand people attending. It has been a huge success and is something we will definitely be continuing to run next year’
The event brought expert advisors together from fertility clinics, adoption and fostering agencies to co-parenting websites to include Pride Angel which is now the leading connection service for gay, lesbian, single and infertile couples wishing to find known sperm donors and co-parents.
Pride Angel said ‘It was fantastic to hear all the positive comments about our service. Many lesbian women really liked the idea of having a ‘dad’ involved in their children’s lives. Many gay couples who had previously believed that surrogacy or adoption was the only method of starting a family, where extremely interested in potential co-parenting arrangements‘.
The show also ran several seminars throughout the day giving advice about fostering and adoption, using a known sperm donor, the legal side of co-parenting, using nutrition to boost fertility and help prevent miscarriage, surrogacy – the law and choosing surrogacy abroad. Stonewall presented a seminar regarding children from different families, about gay families and schools. Lastly but not least, Littlepink, a network for same sex parents and children spoke about the importance of support networks and the value behind a community.
For more information about parenting options for lesbian, gay, single and infertile couple visit www.prideangel.com
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9hJgYG
Friday 22 October 2010
Exhibitors at the Alternative Families Show London
Exhibitors at the Alternative Families Show London
October 22, 2010 10:00 by PrideAngelAdmin
The Alternative Families Show is taking place this Saturday 23rd October 2010 - 10am to 5pm, Grand Connaught Rooms, Covent Garden, London. Tickets are now available on the day priced £10.
The Alternative Families Show is for would be parents and for families already set up. For those people looking to start a family there are experts on hand to discuss all the options available to a same-sex, male or female couple and to single people wanting to become a parent. Informative seminars will be running throughout the day from conception to schooling.
The show is also for families we have legal advice, opportunities to meet support networks, other parents, and to hear about research findings from Stonewall on children. There will be free children's entertainment throughout the day, allowing parents to speak to the experts in the same room.
Exhibitors at the Alternative Familes Show include:
Pride Angel
Pride Angel is a leading worldwide connection site, fertility forum and blog for lesbian, gay, single and infertile couples, wishing to become parents through co-parenting and donor conception. www.prideangel.com
London Women's Clinic
The LWC provides IVF and fertility treatments to assist couples and individuals overcome their difficulties in conception and pregnancy. They have over 20 years’ experience and operate one of the most successful programmes in the world. www.lwclinic.co.uk
London Sperm Bank
The UK's premier sperm bank. Giving women in the U.K. maximum choice without having to undertake expensive travel abroad. The LSB is licensed by the HFEA. www.londonspermbank.com
Stonewall
The lesbian, gay and bisexual charity. Stonewall played a key role in lobbying for important legislative changes for gay and lesbian parents. www.stonewall.org.uk
Time for children
Time for Children is a child-centred fostering agency specialising in the provision for sibling groups - hence our motto, 'enabling brothers and sisters to stay together'. www.timeforchildren.org
To read more go to http://bit.ly/aBmrPm
October 22, 2010 10:00 by PrideAngelAdmin
The Alternative Families Show is taking place this Saturday 23rd October 2010 - 10am to 5pm, Grand Connaught Rooms, Covent Garden, London. Tickets are now available on the day priced £10.
The Alternative Families Show is for would be parents and for families already set up. For those people looking to start a family there are experts on hand to discuss all the options available to a same-sex, male or female couple and to single people wanting to become a parent. Informative seminars will be running throughout the day from conception to schooling.
The show is also for families we have legal advice, opportunities to meet support networks, other parents, and to hear about research findings from Stonewall on children. There will be free children's entertainment throughout the day, allowing parents to speak to the experts in the same room.
Exhibitors at the Alternative Familes Show include:
Pride Angel
Pride Angel is a leading worldwide connection site, fertility forum and blog for lesbian, gay, single and infertile couples, wishing to become parents through co-parenting and donor conception. www.prideangel.com
London Women's Clinic
The LWC provides IVF and fertility treatments to assist couples and individuals overcome their difficulties in conception and pregnancy. They have over 20 years’ experience and operate one of the most successful programmes in the world. www.lwclinic.co.uk
London Sperm Bank
The UK's premier sperm bank. Giving women in the U.K. maximum choice without having to undertake expensive travel abroad. The LSB is licensed by the HFEA. www.londonspermbank.com
Stonewall
The lesbian, gay and bisexual charity. Stonewall played a key role in lobbying for important legislative changes for gay and lesbian parents. www.stonewall.org.uk
Time for children
Time for Children is a child-centred fostering agency specialising in the provision for sibling groups - hence our motto, 'enabling brothers and sisters to stay together'. www.timeforchildren.org
To read more go to http://bit.ly/aBmrPm
Wednesday 20 October 2010
Fertility test could predict a woman's menopause
Women may soon be able to plan better how long to wait to start a family thanks to a simple test.
By reading clues hidden in a woman’s genes, it could give her odds of going through an early menopause, scientists say.
Those deemed to be at risk could try for a baby earlier than they otherwise might.
Lead scientist Dr Anna Murray said: ‘It is estimated that a woman’s ability to conceive decreases on average ten years before she starts the menopause.
‘Therefore, those who are destined to have an early menopause and delay childbearing until their 30s are more likely to have problems conceiving.’
They compared the DNA of 2,000 women who suffered it with that of those who had stopped their periods at the normal age.
In the UK, the average age for the menopause – defined as the time when a woman’s periods have stopped for 12 months – is 52.
However, 1 per cent of women go through the menopause before they hit 40. Timing is largely genetic, although weight and the age that periods start have an effect.
The researchers found that the four genes all affected early menopause in their own ways, and much more so when they were all present. They added that their findings help explain why some females go into menopause early.
Women who enter the menopause early have a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease, infertility and osteoporosis, and a lower risk of getting breast cancer.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/c2ui3d
By reading clues hidden in a woman’s genes, it could give her odds of going through an early menopause, scientists say.
Those deemed to be at risk could try for a baby earlier than they otherwise might.
Lead scientist Dr Anna Murray said: ‘It is estimated that a woman’s ability to conceive decreases on average ten years before she starts the menopause.
‘Therefore, those who are destined to have an early menopause and delay childbearing until their 30s are more likely to have problems conceiving.’
They compared the DNA of 2,000 women who suffered it with that of those who had stopped their periods at the normal age.
In the UK, the average age for the menopause – defined as the time when a woman’s periods have stopped for 12 months – is 52.
However, 1 per cent of women go through the menopause before they hit 40. Timing is largely genetic, although weight and the age that periods start have an effect.
The researchers found that the four genes all affected early menopause in their own ways, and much more so when they were all present. They added that their findings help explain why some females go into menopause early.
Women who enter the menopause early have a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease, infertility and osteoporosis, and a lower risk of getting breast cancer.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/c2ui3d
Sunday 17 October 2010
Sperm donor and co-parent website: How does Pride Angel work?
You are one step closer to starting your family or helping others achieve their dream. Find out more about how Pride Angel works, whether you are a wishing to become a sperm donor, egg donor, co-parent, or recipient looking for a donor.
Getting information
Donors
Choosing to donate sperm or eggs is a wonderful gift, giving others the opportunity of becoming parents. It can be a big decision to become a donor, whether or not you wish to be involved in the upbringing of the child, it is worth considering what level of contact you wish to maintain. Getting plenty of information regarding your legal rights and what health screening is required is really important.
Recipients
Are you looking for a sperm donor to complete your family? It is a big decision and you will want to choose the right person, as ultimately they will be giving 50% of your future child’s genes. It is also really important to find a like minded person, especially when there is an intention that the donor will play a part in the child’s life, such as an ‘uncle type figure’. Even if your intention is for your child to have no contact with the donor, children need to have the ability to trace their identity as they become adults. Therefore keeping a record of the donor’s identification is important to enable them to trace at age 18 years if they wish to. Receiving treatment through a fertility clinic will ensure that these details are kept on file. If you are a lesbian couple, it is worth considering whether you will be entering into a civil partnership before starting fertility treatment or home insemination. If you are civil partners at the time you conceive, the non-birth mother is your child's legal parent if you conceive artificially (which covers IUI or IVF at a licensed clinic, and artificial insemination at home) If you are a single woman and you conceive outside a fertility clinic (home insemination) your donor would be treated as the child’s legal parent in the eyes of the law.
Co-parents
Choosing to co-parent as a single person or couple is a real commitment, but an arrangement which works, can be really beneficial to a child, gaining input from both biological parents and the extra support from extended family members. As a co-parent you would be sharing parental responsibility and also any financial responsibility too. Members wishing to co-parent are advised to take their time choosing the right kind of person who has similar parenting styles and values to you. Getting to know your co-parent over a period of a year can enables a greater understanding of whether you would both be able to co-parent effectively.
Involving your partner
If you are looking for a sperm donor as part of a couple, such as a lesbian couple, or heterosexual couples, it is important to involve your partner as much as possible in the process. The partner who is not the birth mother can sometimes feel left out and may be concerned about whether they will bond with the child. It is important to keep communication open at all times and to both talk about ways in which you could make each other feel secure and happier in the decision to start a family together. Share your thoughts and feelings, maybe have counselling together before starting your journey to parenthood.
If you are a donor looking to donate or co-parent as part of a couple it is also necessary to consider the feeling of your partner and to be open and honest about your donations. Many children wish for the option of contacting their donor later in life, even if simply to see what their ‘biological father or mother’ is like. How you would feel and how your partner would feel, when a’ biological child’ makes contact in the future must be a serious consideration when choosing to donate.
Viewing profiles
Pride Angel allows you to search basic profiles of sperm donors, egg donors, co-parents and recipients without the need to register, searching by country and county. However to view another member’s full profile and any image/picture you are required to register with us. Becoming a member also allows you to do ‘advanced searches’ allowing you to search specific criteria such as eye colour, hair colour and race, to name but a few.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9mvqof
Getting information
Donors
Choosing to donate sperm or eggs is a wonderful gift, giving others the opportunity of becoming parents. It can be a big decision to become a donor, whether or not you wish to be involved in the upbringing of the child, it is worth considering what level of contact you wish to maintain. Getting plenty of information regarding your legal rights and what health screening is required is really important.
Recipients
Are you looking for a sperm donor to complete your family? It is a big decision and you will want to choose the right person, as ultimately they will be giving 50% of your future child’s genes. It is also really important to find a like minded person, especially when there is an intention that the donor will play a part in the child’s life, such as an ‘uncle type figure’. Even if your intention is for your child to have no contact with the donor, children need to have the ability to trace their identity as they become adults. Therefore keeping a record of the donor’s identification is important to enable them to trace at age 18 years if they wish to. Receiving treatment through a fertility clinic will ensure that these details are kept on file. If you are a lesbian couple, it is worth considering whether you will be entering into a civil partnership before starting fertility treatment or home insemination. If you are civil partners at the time you conceive, the non-birth mother is your child's legal parent if you conceive artificially (which covers IUI or IVF at a licensed clinic, and artificial insemination at home) If you are a single woman and you conceive outside a fertility clinic (home insemination) your donor would be treated as the child’s legal parent in the eyes of the law.
Co-parents
Choosing to co-parent as a single person or couple is a real commitment, but an arrangement which works, can be really beneficial to a child, gaining input from both biological parents and the extra support from extended family members. As a co-parent you would be sharing parental responsibility and also any financial responsibility too. Members wishing to co-parent are advised to take their time choosing the right kind of person who has similar parenting styles and values to you. Getting to know your co-parent over a period of a year can enables a greater understanding of whether you would both be able to co-parent effectively.
Involving your partner
If you are looking for a sperm donor as part of a couple, such as a lesbian couple, or heterosexual couples, it is important to involve your partner as much as possible in the process. The partner who is not the birth mother can sometimes feel left out and may be concerned about whether they will bond with the child. It is important to keep communication open at all times and to both talk about ways in which you could make each other feel secure and happier in the decision to start a family together. Share your thoughts and feelings, maybe have counselling together before starting your journey to parenthood.
If you are a donor looking to donate or co-parent as part of a couple it is also necessary to consider the feeling of your partner and to be open and honest about your donations. Many children wish for the option of contacting their donor later in life, even if simply to see what their ‘biological father or mother’ is like. How you would feel and how your partner would feel, when a’ biological child’ makes contact in the future must be a serious consideration when choosing to donate.
Viewing profiles
Pride Angel allows you to search basic profiles of sperm donors, egg donors, co-parents and recipients without the need to register, searching by country and county. However to view another member’s full profile and any image/picture you are required to register with us. Becoming a member also allows you to do ‘advanced searches’ allowing you to search specific criteria such as eye colour, hair colour and race, to name but a few.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9mvqof
Saturday 16 October 2010
Healthy babies born using new genetic egg screening technique
Four women have given birth to healthy babies after having their eggs genetically screened using a technique that offers new hope to childless couples.
The success could help women who have failed to conceive with the help of IVF to have babies. All were taking part in a pilot study testing a new method of looking for chromosomal abnormalities in eggs.
The technique, called comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH) by microarray, could also make it easier for women to give birth later in life when there is less chance of becoming pregnant.
But doctors involved in the trial stress that the technique can only help them identify viable eggs - it does nothing to improve the chances of producing high quality eggs in the first place.
The European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology (Eshre) today announced that women at two centres in Bonn, Germany, and Bologna, Italy, had given birth to healthy babies after undergoing array CGH.
The German patient, aged 34, gave birth to twin girls in June. Three months later the 39-year-old woman in Italy gave birth to a baby boy. Later it was revealed that two more women aged 37 at the Bonn centre had given birth to singleton babies in August. A number of other women from the total of 41 taking part in the study are said to be at advanced stages of pregnancy.
Unlike other screening methods, CGH tests all 23 pairs of chromosomes in a cell, not just a limited number. It looks at the two polar bodies - incomplete daughter cells produced during cell division containing unwanted copies of a woman's chromosomes.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/bc7B1F
The success could help women who have failed to conceive with the help of IVF to have babies. All were taking part in a pilot study testing a new method of looking for chromosomal abnormalities in eggs.
The technique, called comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH) by microarray, could also make it easier for women to give birth later in life when there is less chance of becoming pregnant.
But doctors involved in the trial stress that the technique can only help them identify viable eggs - it does nothing to improve the chances of producing high quality eggs in the first place.
The European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology (Eshre) today announced that women at two centres in Bonn, Germany, and Bologna, Italy, had given birth to healthy babies after undergoing array CGH.
The German patient, aged 34, gave birth to twin girls in June. Three months later the 39-year-old woman in Italy gave birth to a baby boy. Later it was revealed that two more women aged 37 at the Bonn centre had given birth to singleton babies in August. A number of other women from the total of 41 taking part in the study are said to be at advanced stages of pregnancy.
Unlike other screening methods, CGH tests all 23 pairs of chromosomes in a cell, not just a limited number. It looks at the two polar bodies - incomplete daughter cells produced during cell division containing unwanted copies of a woman's chromosomes.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/bc7B1F
Thursday 14 October 2010
The Times are looking to speak with lesbian and gay co-parenting families
The Times Weekend section are doing a piece on the Alternative Families Show, taking place Saturday 23rd October 2010 - 10am to 5pm GRAND CONNAUGHT ROOMS, COVENT GARDEN, LONDON
The Times are looking for a compelling case study to lead the piece, of people who have successfully started a family through co-parenting.
Would any of our members be interested in a photo shoot and an interview with them, talking about your experience of finding someone to start a family with, who you are not in a relationship with?
Any interested members would need to be photographed, but this could be done in an anonymous way if necessary. If both co-parents are willing to speak that would also be fantastic. The Times are interested in Lesbian couples who have used a known sperm donor or gay and lesbian singles or couples who have made co-parenting arrangements.
The piece would be sensitive and non-sensationalist, highlighting the growing number of people who realise their dream of starting a family using alternative means.
The Times would like to speak with anyone interested, as soon as possible.
Please contact Pride Angel for further information contact us
Pride Angel will be exhibiting at the Alternative Families Show and we are happy to help answer any questions you may have regarding:
Choosing to use a known donor
Co-parenting arrangements
Health screening
Fertility law
Home insemination
We look forward to seeing you there. Pride Angel
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9GlgwM
The Times are looking for a compelling case study to lead the piece, of people who have successfully started a family through co-parenting.
Would any of our members be interested in a photo shoot and an interview with them, talking about your experience of finding someone to start a family with, who you are not in a relationship with?
Any interested members would need to be photographed, but this could be done in an anonymous way if necessary. If both co-parents are willing to speak that would also be fantastic. The Times are interested in Lesbian couples who have used a known sperm donor or gay and lesbian singles or couples who have made co-parenting arrangements.
The piece would be sensitive and non-sensationalist, highlighting the growing number of people who realise their dream of starting a family using alternative means.
The Times would like to speak with anyone interested, as soon as possible.
Please contact Pride Angel for further information contact us
Pride Angel will be exhibiting at the Alternative Families Show and we are happy to help answer any questions you may have regarding:
Choosing to use a known donor
Co-parenting arrangements
Health screening
Fertility law
Home insemination
We look forward to seeing you there. Pride Angel
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9GlgwM
Tuesday 12 October 2010
Acupuncture enabled us to have a baby after three years of trying
After three years of trying to have a baby, Dawn Paddock was desperate.
As a nurse in gynaecology, she had naturally relied on western medicine to help treat a blocked fallopian tube and other problems.
But, with no sign of motherhood looming, she and her husband Chris were about to embark on IVF when a friend came up with another idea - acupuncture.
And Mrs Paddock reckons the following three half-hour sessions of the ancient Chinese practice helped her conceive their long-awaited son, Shay.
The 31-year-old, who described the treatment as 'the best £60 I have ever spent', admitted: 'I was sceptical. As a nurse you rely heavily on western medicine, rather than alternative methods.
'But I thought if nothing else it would help me to relax and destress.'
Mrs Paddock, of Wrexham in North Wales, added: 'My husband and I just stared at Shay for what felt like hours after he was born.
To read more go to
As a nurse in gynaecology, she had naturally relied on western medicine to help treat a blocked fallopian tube and other problems.
But, with no sign of motherhood looming, she and her husband Chris were about to embark on IVF when a friend came up with another idea - acupuncture.
And Mrs Paddock reckons the following three half-hour sessions of the ancient Chinese practice helped her conceive their long-awaited son, Shay.
The 31-year-old, who described the treatment as 'the best £60 I have ever spent', admitted: 'I was sceptical. As a nurse you rely heavily on western medicine, rather than alternative methods.
'But I thought if nothing else it would help me to relax and destress.'
Mrs Paddock, of Wrexham in North Wales, added: 'My husband and I just stared at Shay for what felt like hours after he was born.
To read more go to
Monday 11 October 2010
Baby boy born from embryo frozen 20 years ago
Preserving embryos by freezing has become commonplace in fertility treatment to allow women to attempt multiple cycles without repeatedly creating new embryos.
Now scientists have announced that a baby boy was born in May to a 42-year-old woman after being adopted as an embryo from a couple who created it 20 years ago.
Previously the oldest successful frozen embryo was 13 years old.
The couple who created the embryo had completed their own family through IVF and anonymously offered their remaining frozen embryos to other couples.
The children are all biological siblings although born 20 years apart.
The case was written by doctors from the Eastern Virginia medical school up in the journal Fertility and Sterility.
Dr Sergio Oehninger told the Sunday Times: “We do not want to be thinking about having 40-year-old embryos in the freezer. We would have a new generation using embryos of the older generation.”
Embryo freezing is another method by which women can preserve their fertility for years alongside egg freezing and a newly emerging technique of freezing ovarian tissue.
Inter-generational donation has already been raised as a possibility.
In 2007 a mother froze some of her own eggs so they could be used by her then-seven-year-old daughter who was likely to be infertile because of a medical condition.
To read more go to
Now scientists have announced that a baby boy was born in May to a 42-year-old woman after being adopted as an embryo from a couple who created it 20 years ago.
Previously the oldest successful frozen embryo was 13 years old.
The couple who created the embryo had completed their own family through IVF and anonymously offered their remaining frozen embryos to other couples.
The children are all biological siblings although born 20 years apart.
The case was written by doctors from the Eastern Virginia medical school up in the journal Fertility and Sterility.
Dr Sergio Oehninger told the Sunday Times: “We do not want to be thinking about having 40-year-old embryos in the freezer. We would have a new generation using embryos of the older generation.”
Embryo freezing is another method by which women can preserve their fertility for years alongside egg freezing and a newly emerging technique of freezing ovarian tissue.
Inter-generational donation has already been raised as a possibility.
In 2007 a mother froze some of her own eggs so they could be used by her then-seven-year-old daughter who was likely to be infertile because of a medical condition.
To read more go to
Friday 8 October 2010
Cause of pre-eclampsia discovered, could lead to a new treatment
The root cause of a medical problem that endangers the lives of thousands of pregnant women and their babies in Britain each year has been discovered.
Researchers at Cambridge University have worked out what leads to pre-eclampsia, a condition that causes dangerously high blood pressure in women, often in the later stages of pregnancy.
The findings raise hope for treatments that can prevent the complication found in 2-7% of all pregnancies, which typically kills several hundred babies and six women in the UK each year. Milder forms of pre-eclampsia affect about one in 10 first-time pregnancies.
A team led by Aiwu Zhou at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research used intense x-ray beams at the Diamond Light Source facility in Oxfordshire to study the structure of angiotensinogen, a protein linked to high blood pressure.
Scientists knew the protein triggered the release of hormones called angiotensins that cause blood vessels to constrict, but how this happened was not clear. When veins and arteries constrict, blood pressure rises in the same way that squeezing a garden hose increases the pressure of water running through it.
Zhou's team found that angiotensinogen changes shape when it is oxidised by reactive molecules in the blood. The oxidised protein bends in such a way that a common enzyme can cut it in two, releasing angiotensin. The study appears in the journal, Nature. In a follow up experiment, the researchers analysed blood samples taken from volunteers. They showed that in healthy people, a steady 60% of angiotensinogen was oxidised, but in women with pre-eclampsia the level was much higher. "When we looked at the blood samples, we were immediately able to identify eight of 12 women with pre-eclampsia," said Robin Carrell, a co-author of the study.
Professor Carrell said changes in the placenta during pregnancy alter how much oxygen the growing baby receives, but this can trigger the release of free radicals that oxidise angiotensinogen and cause blood pressure to rise.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9Tz0Xw
Researchers at Cambridge University have worked out what leads to pre-eclampsia, a condition that causes dangerously high blood pressure in women, often in the later stages of pregnancy.
The findings raise hope for treatments that can prevent the complication found in 2-7% of all pregnancies, which typically kills several hundred babies and six women in the UK each year. Milder forms of pre-eclampsia affect about one in 10 first-time pregnancies.
A team led by Aiwu Zhou at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research used intense x-ray beams at the Diamond Light Source facility in Oxfordshire to study the structure of angiotensinogen, a protein linked to high blood pressure.
Scientists knew the protein triggered the release of hormones called angiotensins that cause blood vessels to constrict, but how this happened was not clear. When veins and arteries constrict, blood pressure rises in the same way that squeezing a garden hose increases the pressure of water running through it.
Zhou's team found that angiotensinogen changes shape when it is oxidised by reactive molecules in the blood. The oxidised protein bends in such a way that a common enzyme can cut it in two, releasing angiotensin. The study appears in the journal, Nature. In a follow up experiment, the researchers analysed blood samples taken from volunteers. They showed that in healthy people, a steady 60% of angiotensinogen was oxidised, but in women with pre-eclampsia the level was much higher. "When we looked at the blood samples, we were immediately able to identify eight of 12 women with pre-eclampsia," said Robin Carrell, a co-author of the study.
Professor Carrell said changes in the placenta during pregnancy alter how much oxygen the growing baby receives, but this can trigger the release of free radicals that oxidise angiotensinogen and cause blood pressure to rise.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/9Tz0Xw
Lesbian couple from Australia conceive quintuplets, that's five babies
Two Australian women living together have spoken of their joy after revealing they are expecting quintuplets together. Melissa Keevers, 27, and her partner Rosemary Nolan, 21, who already share a child born to Melissa through donor insemination, were stunned to Melissa was carrying five babies at odds of one in sixty million.
'I was in shock for weeks,' Melissa told Australia's Woman's Day magazine.
'It took me a long time to get my head around what was happening. But now I've come to terms with it, I'm excited.' While conceiving quintuplets is rare, Melissa's babies are even more remarkable because she had no treatment to increase her fertility.
'During the scan the doctor asked us if we wanted the news, but as he looked pale, we were worried something was wrong,' Melissa told the magazine.
'He then told us he'd found five gestational sacs meaning, if all went well, we'd have five babies. We can't repeat what we said next!' The two women, who live in Brisbane, decided to use the same U.S. company and the same donor as the person who fathered their daughter, Lilly, now aged one.
They had been given 30 donor profiles to choose from and in the end they narrowed the person down to a 27-year-old dark-haired law student with good teeth and eyesight and a high IQ, although his identity remains a secret.
Rosemary, who is from Ireland, had left home in 2008 and was travelling around Australia, having fun, when she met Melissa and settled down with her.
When Melissa became pregnant with Lilly they decided to travel to Ireland so that Rosemary could tell her family that she was gay.
To read more got to
'I was in shock for weeks,' Melissa told Australia's Woman's Day magazine.
'It took me a long time to get my head around what was happening. But now I've come to terms with it, I'm excited.' While conceiving quintuplets is rare, Melissa's babies are even more remarkable because she had no treatment to increase her fertility.
'During the scan the doctor asked us if we wanted the news, but as he looked pale, we were worried something was wrong,' Melissa told the magazine.
'He then told us he'd found five gestational sacs meaning, if all went well, we'd have five babies. We can't repeat what we said next!' The two women, who live in Brisbane, decided to use the same U.S. company and the same donor as the person who fathered their daughter, Lilly, now aged one.
They had been given 30 donor profiles to choose from and in the end they narrowed the person down to a 27-year-old dark-haired law student with good teeth and eyesight and a high IQ, although his identity remains a secret.
Rosemary, who is from Ireland, had left home in 2008 and was travelling around Australia, having fun, when she met Melissa and settled down with her.
When Melissa became pregnant with Lilly they decided to travel to Ireland so that Rosemary could tell her family that she was gay.
To read more got to
Monday 4 October 2010
Sperm donors online - over the Internet
The internet has revolutionised the way we do many things and perhaps it’s most enduring and significant impact has been on how we communicate with one another. For some single women, it has even changed the way they can get pregnant. The Human Fertilisation and Embryo Authority (HFEA) last week announced that it plans to launch an investigation into the legality of websites set up to put women in contact with sperm donors. This follows the recent conviction of two businessmen who acted as “sperm brokers”. They ran a website that couriered fresh samples from donors to women for home insemination.
Most of these websites, however, simply provide a facility for women to make contact with potential donors and the individuals make their own arrangements. But the HFEA claims that the websites are putting women’s health at risk because they are unregulated and there is no official way of screening the donors for sexually transmitted infections such as HIV. Instead it is the sole responsibility of the individuals involved to make arrangements to be screened and ensure that the donor is disease free.
In contrast, fertility clinics operate within specific safeguards, which include screening donors prior to donation and storing samples for six months before use to ensure the male donor is negative for HIV. It is therefore true that there is a risk associated with DIY insemination.
But the HFEA’s objections smack of little more than nanny-stateism. I can’t help but feel they are reacting in this way because their nose had been put out of joint at the thought of people taking fertility into their own hands and undermining their authority. They have helped create an industry around getting pregnant and don’t like the idea that there are some aspects of it that they cannot regulate or control.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/cieOSO
Most of these websites, however, simply provide a facility for women to make contact with potential donors and the individuals make their own arrangements. But the HFEA claims that the websites are putting women’s health at risk because they are unregulated and there is no official way of screening the donors for sexually transmitted infections such as HIV. Instead it is the sole responsibility of the individuals involved to make arrangements to be screened and ensure that the donor is disease free.
In contrast, fertility clinics operate within specific safeguards, which include screening donors prior to donation and storing samples for six months before use to ensure the male donor is negative for HIV. It is therefore true that there is a risk associated with DIY insemination.
But the HFEA’s objections smack of little more than nanny-stateism. I can’t help but feel they are reacting in this way because their nose had been put out of joint at the thought of people taking fertility into their own hands and undermining their authority. They have helped create an industry around getting pregnant and don’t like the idea that there are some aspects of it that they cannot regulate or control.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/cieOSO
Saturday 2 October 2010
A cup of coffee may prevent IVF complication
Researchers today suggested a life-threatening complication of fertility treatment could be prevented by a cup of coffee, after a study identified a possible cause.
In vitro fertilisation has resulted in the birth of many babies since the first 'test tube' baby in 1978. But around 5 per cent to 10 per cent of women undergoing IVF experience a condition known as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS).
Although the majority of cases are mild, with symptoms including abdominal bloating, nausea and weight gain, in its most serious form it can cause blood clotting disorders, kidney damage and chest pain.
Scientists from Middlesex University and Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry who analysed fluid around the human egg reported finding surprisingly high levels of the chemical adenosine.
They believe OHSS is caused when IVF drug stimulation creates high levels of adenosine, causing the blood vessels to dilate and blood fluid to leak into tissue.
The authors of the study, published in Metabolism Journal, wrote: 'Although adenosine has been detected in follicular fluid before, we were surprised at the extremely high levels detected in this study.'
They described the chemical as a 'significant contender as the molecular cause of OHSS'. To detect adenosine in blood samples, the scientists used a technique called metabolomics, which involves the study of chemical evidence of cellular processes.
The researchers said a solution could lie in caffeine, which acts as a block to adenosine. Ray Iles, professor of biomedical science at Middlesex University, said: 'It may be that a cup of strong coffee with every IVF cycle could reduce the chances of OHSS.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/bw1Kri
In vitro fertilisation has resulted in the birth of many babies since the first 'test tube' baby in 1978. But around 5 per cent to 10 per cent of women undergoing IVF experience a condition known as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS).
Although the majority of cases are mild, with symptoms including abdominal bloating, nausea and weight gain, in its most serious form it can cause blood clotting disorders, kidney damage and chest pain.
Scientists from Middlesex University and Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry who analysed fluid around the human egg reported finding surprisingly high levels of the chemical adenosine.
They believe OHSS is caused when IVF drug stimulation creates high levels of adenosine, causing the blood vessels to dilate and blood fluid to leak into tissue.
The authors of the study, published in Metabolism Journal, wrote: 'Although adenosine has been detected in follicular fluid before, we were surprised at the extremely high levels detected in this study.'
They described the chemical as a 'significant contender as the molecular cause of OHSS'. To detect adenosine in blood samples, the scientists used a technique called metabolomics, which involves the study of chemical evidence of cellular processes.
The researchers said a solution could lie in caffeine, which acts as a block to adenosine. Ray Iles, professor of biomedical science at Middlesex University, said: 'It may be that a cup of strong coffee with every IVF cycle could reduce the chances of OHSS.
To read more go to http://bit.ly/bw1Kri
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