About two months ago while listening to a radio interview on in-vitro fertilization, the topic of ‘Egg Sharing’ was addressed. A representative of a leading fertility clinic in the region explained it as an agreement between two women where a woman incapable of egg production is paired with one who is, on the premise that the IVF cost involved for the ‘egg-producer’ would be subsidised or covered by the ‘egg-recipient.’ It also assumes the willingness of the egg-donor to share eggs produced.
This left me asking several questions about the value of the human egg, the definition of a parent and issues of ownership should the donor’s treatment fail.
Can donor consent be compromised? Will this result in the abuse and commodification of the gamete? Is the region prepared for an interaction of this nature? And what might our role be as a regional bioethics society in engaging the stakeholders?
Of note, there are no specific national or regional legislation governing this area of medicine.
The link below makes for a good read on the topic:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-20646478
submitted by Gillian Mignott
