n 1978, when doctors introduced "critical look at the direction of the ART what they have decided on and asked I Louise Brown, the first "test tube" or indtlstry's agenda and actions leaves the doctors to carry out" in vitro fertilization (IVF) baby, to the observers with several trou­ Many Catholic scholars, scientists, world, the international media hailed bling ethical and medical questions and J.aypersons adopted sentiments the event as something jUst short of the that might be summed up as: "Where similar to those of the , only definitive answer to infertility. In Time will it all end?" without the helper verb, "may." Unen­ magazine, Dr. Robert Edwards-one of Coming precisely one decade after cumbered by meaningful opposition, the brains behind Baby Louise's birth the publication of Pope Paul VI's pro­ the ART industry, a ·consortium of re­ and the acknowledged godfather of the phetic encyclical, , the searchers, medical school profession­ assisted reproductive technology (ART) initial Catholic response to Baby Lou­ als, pharmaceutical companies, and industry it spawned-boasted: "This is ise Wa.s ambiguous. Just days before others, formed an unofficial alliance the first time we've solved all the prob­ being named Pope John Paul I, Albino with the secular media and quickly lems at once. We're at the beginning of Luciani expressed his "best wishes to evolved into a formidable and profit- the end-not the end of the beginning." the baby," suggesting that the parents able presence worldwide. . Now, more than three decades later, a may "have ~at merit before God for As IVF births mounted, media out------

lets recognized and satiated the public's the procedure is looked upon as com­ is Changing Men, Women, and the appetite for heartstring-tugging stories monplace, even routine. The most World (2007). The book offered about infertile couples who were finally recent data available from the CDC detailed descriptions of the reduc­ able to achieve pregnancy and live birth shows NF procedures in the US have tions of multiples-pregnancies via the " of NF." Multi-birth doubled over the past decade, with 475 (twins, triplets, or more), in which pregnancies and grateful moms and NF clinics performing nearly 150,000 the least viable-looking fetus (or dads holding their smiling IVF triplets, "cycles" of NF annually. fetuses) is aborted by sodium quads, quints, or more made for great TY. NF stories in the media, including chloride injection. More recently, ART publicists were only too happy TV reality shows, continue to generate a New York Times Magazine cover to supply IVF doctors and other medi­ cal professionals who delivered appro­ priate soundbites. To the casual viewer on the outside looking in, the medical world had, indeed, solved the problem of infertility.

ONTHE CU1TING ROOM FLOOR: THE IVF PROCEDURE Cultural attitudes and perceptions of IVF, formed in large part by the media, are long on images of darling NF chil­ dren and short on information about the impersonal NF procedure itself, ·.· . . . which is rarely-if ever-described in good: audien!=e ratings. But iri recent story (Augtist 11, 2011) high­ detail. years a number of new, Un.scripted stor­ lighted selective reduction under Here's the basic process: oocytes, or yllites have beg\m to emerge,:r~vealing the headline "The Two-Minus One human eggs (obtained surgically from the dart

I

11 II CAl 1101 !( 1\0RI IJ IU !'OR!, ,\!ovcmbc•, :'lll I 10 I industry's "dirty little secret'' -the popular traction in the US, the number beings determined to be less desir­ hidden dangers and risks to the of same-sex or transgendered persons able than their siblings. Confer­ health of young women who wishing to have children is also sure ence speakers include a sympa­ "donate" eggs for use in IVF clin­ to rise. thetic columnist from the Guardian ics, thus fueling the human-egg and Simon Fishel, Ph.D., a former trade. The film was named Best DRIVINGTHE RADICAL colleague of Dr. Robert Edwards Documentary at the 2011 Califor­ AGENDA: MAINSTREAM whose achievements include ap­ nia Independent Film Festival. MEDICINE'S ROLE pointment as deputy scientific di­ Echoes of Our Choice (2010, Ignatius These and other reproductive tech­ of the world's first IVF clinic Productions) is a film by Michi­ niques, services, and consequences are at Bourne Hall, Cambridge. gan neonatologist Robin Pierucci well within the mainstream of the medi­ documenting the largely ignored cal field. In fact, major ART conferences • The title of an Australian sci­ dangers of premature multiple­ in the us and around the world tell the ence symposium associated with births-birth defects and high story of an obstetrics/gynecology/endo­ the World Congress on Human mortality rates-that are common crinology profession that is not only not Reproduction speaks volumes: in IVF pregnancies, and devastat- aghast at the anti-life, anti-maitiage, "When Starting a Family Takes More .Than Two." Other sympo­ sium topics include "Are the Kids Really All Right-What Happens When the Donor Families Link Up?", "Family Structures are Changing More Than You Know," and "Does Sperm Donation in Australia and New Zealand Have a Future?" The World Congress on Human Reproduction's provoca­ tive theme for 2011 is "Making Babies: Is It Just Chemistry?"

• A veritable Who's Who of pres­ tigious US research universities and reproductive institutions will be represented at the No­ vember 20ll meeting of ASRM in Orlando, titled "Realizing Scientific Dreams." Among the ing to unsuspecting parents.···· · and anti-family protocols that are gi~­ post-graduate sessions: "Fertility ens in the field of human reproduction and Family Building in the Trans­ These and other revelations represent ap.d nascent life, but is in fact leading gender Population," a one-day merely the tip of the IVF iceberg. With the charge for such practices and pro­ course exploring "gender identity regulation of the IVF industry virtually cedures: dysphoria/disorder, its diagnosis nonexistent in the US, it is estimated and management, and special that a stockpile of some 500,000 human • ''The Embryo's Out-of-Body Ex­ needs of transgendered individu­ embryos-labeled as "spares" -are perience" is one session title at the als seeking ART." Two Yale Medi­ now in a cryopreserved (frozen) state. 2011 conference of the Progress cal School professionals will lead Moving toward "designer babies," IVF Educational Trust, which is being a symposium titled "Two Moms, specialists are marketing and promot­ held in London this November Two Dads: Same-Sex Couples and ing the use of prenatal genetic diagno­ and which is sponsored by inter­ Assisted Reproduction." Alan E. sis to scan and test chromosomes of IVF national biopharmaceutical giants Guttmacher, MD of the Guttm­ embryos, allowing for the elimination Merck Serono () and Fer­ acher Institute (the research arm of those nascent human beings with ring Pharmaceuticals (New Jer­ 9f Planned Parenthood) will offer less-than-desirable genetic traits. sey). The "out-of-body" language thoughts on "Future Directions Same-sex parenting-egg donation challenges attendees to consider in Reproductive Research." Other and surrogacy for gay men, sperm do­ the question of which environ­ sessions cover embryo selection, nation and intrauterine insemination ment is best for the newly created mandated insurance coverage for and IVF for lesbians-is on the uptick. embryo: the mother's uterus, or a ART, and tips for acquiring em­ Assisted Human Reproduction Cana­ petri dish. A session called "Mak­ bryonic stem cells. Mental health da, a federal regulatory agency, reports ing the Grade," offers guidance professionals will look at '~ssess­ that three out of every five demands for on selecting embryos for transfer ing Books for Donor-Conceived assisted reproduction in that country based on established guidelines, Young Adult Readers." Attendees come from same-sex couples. As same­ which -given the frequency of will investigate the ethics of post­ sex marriage and surgery for trans­ selective reduction -can't be good humous reproduction. A major gendered persons gain political and news for those embryonic human conference highlight will be "Con-

14 TilE C \Tl fOLIC WORLD REPORT, Novembe1 2011 -- --~I

traception Day," featuring a key­ note address titled "Let's Get Seri­ ous: Evidence Clearly Suggests What Could Be Done to Diminish Unintended Pregnancies," and an interactive debate on "Adoles~ cent Contraception: DepoProvera vs. IUDs" presented by-whom else? -the ASRM's Contraception Special Interest Group, of course.

Corporate sponsors play a key role at the ASRM gathering, with pharmaceu­ tical companies like Merck and Pfizer among the "Ruby Level Supporters," donating at least $100,000 in exchange for high visibility among attendees. The ASRM is recognized· by the Inter­ nal Revenue Service as a 501 (c)(3) non­ profit corporation, with total revenue in 2010 of more than $9 million, and total assets exceeding $30 million.

HUMAN SEXUALITY, PROCREATION, AND HEALTH CARETHROUGHTHEROMAN CATHOLIC LENS There is a profound contrast between current mainstream approaches and solutions to infertility and reproduc­ tive health and that of a relatively small but growing group of medical surgeons and other professionals trained within a Catholic ethos. While much of the The "hub" of NPT is a natural meth­ done in the context of protecting hu­ popular perception of Roman Catho­ od of family planning-the Creighton man life and the dignity of the conjugal lic thinking on sexuality tends to focus Model FertilityCare System. (CrMS)­ act that leads to human procreation. In on the Church's opposition to abortion that provides ~;:ouples with fertility all of these respects, NPT is not ohly ef­ and artificial birth control-important information to help them pursue their fective in its medical and surgical ap­ tenets to be sure-it is hardly the com­ goal of conceiving babies of their own. proach to infertility, it is also plete story. The _system teaches the woman to ob­ to other reproductive treatments in its In 1985, Dr. Thomas W. Hilgers and Jf'lrve and chart cervical discharge, ethical perspective. · his wife Sue, inspired by the message known as a ''bio-marker," throughout and call of the papal encyclical Huma­ her cycle. CULTURE CLASH nae Vitae, decided to establish the Pope With this information, the woman The desperation experienced by Paul VI Institute for the Study of Hu­ and her husband know their window couples seeking solutions to infertil­ man Reproduction. Since that time, the of fertile days, allowing them to direct ity, combined with the seductive mar­ Omaha, Nebraska-based institute has their acts of intercourse to the days that keting of ART alternatives and a lack become the epicenter for medical and optimize chances of achieving a preg­ of solid catechesis, very often pushes surgical approaches to infertility that nancy. Catholic moral and ethical concerns re­ conform to the 's vision More than just a roadmap to days of garding fertility treatments to the back­ of the value of human life and human fertility, medical data from the couple's ground-if they are considered at all. procreation. charts also serve as a diagnostic tool for If society's moral infrastructure rests Driven by the Church's age-old vi­ NPT-trained physicians, helping them - squarely on the foundation of the fam­ sion of the human person, human sexu­ identify many underlying diseases and ily, then appraising the moral char­ ality, and marriage, the institute has conditions. These are not just related to acter of the means by which couples developed the women's health science infertility, but include a range of wom­ build those families takes on critical known as NaProTechnology (natural en's health issues such as recurrent mis­ individual and social importance. NPT procreative technology, or NPT) as the carriage, premature birth, post-partum protocols assist couples struggling with "small-c catholic" (universal) and "cap­ depression, and much mpre. fertility "to procreate in full respect for ital-c Catholic" answer to infertility, Many NPT-trained doctors can also their o'wn personal dignity and that of touting success rates that are one-and­ provide medical and/or surgical so­ tl ....:hlld to be born" (in the words of a-half to three-and~a-half times higher lutions to infertility and other health the Vatican's 1987 instruction on hu­ than various methods of IVF. problems. These procedures are all man life, Donum Vitae).

THE C \Tf-IOLIC \\ ORLD REPORT, NO\ embe1 2011 15 I In nearly every aspect, ART's goals bodily integrity of gestating babies­ medicine that differs from the main­ and protocols do not pass this test, nor human beings in utero. NPT protocols stream. And Catholic medical profes­ do they even try to do so. The Catholic not only do nothing to destroy a riew sionals are using this knowledge to en­ vision of sexuality and procreation is, · human life-they do a good deal to fa­ gage mainstream. medicine on an intel­ in almost every way, a polar opposite cilitate a healthy, full-term pregnancy. lectual and scientific level in the United of the secular, IVF-based vision. The IVF providers and users demonstrate States and around the world. result is a clash of competing cultures an overtly utilitarian outlook. Infertile Poland, the homeland of Blessed John with emotionally vulnerable couples couples, in their minds, have the right to Paul II-a strong supporter during his trapped in the middle. reproduce in any way they·please and pontificate of Dr. Hilgers, NPT, and the Catholic norms for building a fam­ to conceive their own b!ibies in the·easi­ . Pope Paul VI Institute-is emerging as ily did not develop in a vacuum and est, most expedient way they can. IVF one battleground in the IVF struggle. are d~rived directly from the Church's specialists reduce parents· tcr suppliers After making presentations in late comprehensive vision of the human of fertilization material and reduce the September 2011 to the Polish Society person -rooted in reason, confirmed baby to an end-product, manufactured of Perinatal Medicine, Dr. Hilgers en­ and enriched by faith. The good news, and controlled by technology. .gaged that country's leading IVF doc­ then, is that couples seeking to realize NPT's approach to infertility, by con­ tor, obstetrician/gynecologist Mar­ the laudable goal of conceiving babies trast, encourages couples to work co­ ian Szamatowicz, in a debate before of their own can use these norms as operatively with nature and to respect dozens of physicians about the mer­ guideposts directing them to a good their own human dignity, and that of its and safety of IVF. Hilgers' trip to means of achieving that goal: an infer­ their unborn child. Poland was made partly in response tility treatment that promotes the val- .. ·Couples who have been treated suc­ to more than a dozen Polish medical ues of human life. and huinan procre-· cessfully for infertility through NPT, professionals who journeyed to Oma­ ation. and conceive as a result, do so within ha for an intense week of NPT educa­ Four norms pertaining to infertility their ·own acts of intercourse, that is, tion and training, part of the largest treatment follow from this "small-c" within the only context worthy of the h-aining class in the Pope Paul VI In­ catholic (and Roman Catholic) vision of cori.cepti()n ofa new human being. stitute'shistory. human life and human dignity: Serious discussions referencing ·any ' The Pope Paul VI Institute has be­ rights of an IVF child-"-partiCti.larly come an international destination for • Infertility interventions must re­ whether that child has a r!-ght to be con­ physicians and other medical pro­ spect the inviolable integrity ·of a ceived in a natural way-are virtually fessionals seeking NPT training. In ~ewly developing human life in nonexistent. In the worlc;l of IVF and July 2011, the fourth class of fellows vitro or in utero; embryo transfer, the desires of the par­ graduated frorri the Pope John Paul ents trump all. II Post-Graduate Fellowship in Medi­ • spouses do not have a right to a Since NPT assists the couple in con­ cal and Surgical NaProTechnology. child. Children are, and must be ceiving a child within their own acts of 'J:'hese and eight other graduates are viewed as, a personal gift, the sexual love, this approach to infertility practicing NPT surgical techniques supreme gift of marriage; also encourages parents to appreciate throughout the United States. Two and respect the rights of their children, fellows have been accepted into the • human dignity demands concep­ which follow directly from their dig­ 2011-2012 class. tion, not production of new hu­ nity: to be conceived within, and ~ere­ Although the medical and surgical man beings; and fore to be connected to, the protection, practice of NPT continues to grow in security-and yes, intimacy-of their popularity, Dr. Hilgers and those con­ • a child has the right to be con­ parents' bodily union and marital love~ nected to the Pope Paul VI Institute are ceived within marriage. · under no delusions about what they are A GLOBAL STRUGGLE: up against. There is an inherent absurdity about THE IVF INDUSTRY VS. However, "Building a culture of life reproductive technologies such as IVF NAPROTECHNOLOGY in women's health care," the mission that bring life through death. Couples Propelled by favorable media cover­ of the Pope Paul VI Institute, is not a are informed by IVF specialists as to age, deep-pocketed multinational phar­ quixotic exercise-at least not for those which embryos should be transferred, maceutical allies, and burgeoning de­ physicians, practitioners, and most im­ which should be cryofrozen (possibly mand driven by the instinctively holy, portantly the couples who have been to be donated for embryonic stem cell natural desire of couples to bring chil­ touched by this emerging reproduc­ research, which destroys the embryo), dren into the world, the IVF industry tive health science. How deeply NPT and which should be discarded. shows little sign of subsiding. The issue impacts the secular culture, and an IVF The higher number of multiple births for Catholics is how best to respond to industry spiraling out of control with that occurs with IVF invites the practice this increasingly aggressive assault by an "anything goes" mentality, remains of selective reduction as the pregnancy the mainstream medical community to be seen. • enters the second trimester. For those on the dignity of human life, marriage, babies that do survive, there is a com­ and the natural procreation of children. mensurate higher risk of premature For perhaps the first time since Baby SISTER RENEE MIRKES, OSF, PhD serves birth, often a precursor to abnormal Louise, a viable, medically superior al­ as director of the Center for NaProEthics, the motor and mental· development. ternative is available for not only Cath~ ethics division of the Pope Paul VI Institute. Conversely, NPT treatments for in­ olics, but anyone willing to consider CHUCK WEBER is a freelance writer and film fertility respect the right to life and an effective approach to reproductive producer based in Wichita, Kansas.

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