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Strollerderby
Fertility Clinic Mixes Up Embryos
Carolyn Savage did not choose to be a surrogate mother. But after a fertility clinic implanted the wrong embryo in her womb, she found herself carrying another couple’s baby. And although her fertility doctor gave her the option of aborting, Savage and her husband never considered that an option. “This was someone else’s child,” she said. “We didn’t know who it was. We didn’t know if they didn’t have children or if this was their last chance for a child.”
Savage gave birth to a healthy boy a few days ago and immediately turned the infant over to the care of his biological parents, Paul and Shannon Morell, who are hailing Savage as a “guardian angel.”
What makes the Savages’ decision all the more self-sacrificing–and heartrending–is that Carolyn Savage cannot get pregnant again due to her age and health complications. The couple plans to seek their own–voluntary–surrogate.
Although embryo mix-ups are extremely rare, they do happen and they rarely end so civilly. An embryo mix-up in New York led to a lengthy court battle over visitation rights, while a Japanese woman who chose to abort met with much public scorn. While I applaud Savage’s decision and can only hope that I would make the same choice if I were in her place, I certainly believe it was her decision, and hers alone, to make.
Photo: AP
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Bunny commented on Sep 29 09 at 12:07 pmI kinda hate the way this case has been addressed with a lot of pro-choice/pro-life rhetoric when in fact… it’s just a case of an incredibly nice person doing something incredibly nice for someone else. Good for her – she helped two people have a baby they might not otherwise have had. I hope that she continues her relationship with the child and with the family – seems like that would be most healthy for both her and the kid (in many ways, she *is* the baby’s “real” mother).
g8grl commented on Sep 30 09 at 1:08 amGood for her and the baby’s biological parents. I’m also sure that the settlement they get from the fertility clinic will pay for several surrogates.
Earth commented on Oct 08 09 at 10:23 amGood article, thank you
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