The choice: abort a dying baby, or give birth... so the organs can be harvested
Women opting for abortion in Britain may be asked to aid organ shortage
IRISH women whose babies develop a fatal foetal anomaly in the early stages of pregnancy and who travel to Britain for an abortion, will be asked to consider going ahead with the birth so the NHS can harvest the foetal organs.
Dozens of expectant Irish mothers opt for termination after being told the devastating news that their unborn child has no chance of survival because of the brain defect called anencephaly, which is sometimes picked up by routine scans as early as 12 weeks.
The issue of fatal foetal anomalies is a key driver behind efforts to repeal the Eighth Amendment, which gives equal right to life to the mother and unborn child under the controversial constitutional amendment.
But now, because of a chronic shortage of donated organs in the Britain, mothers who have decided against an abortion will be ‘supported’ to have the baby at nine months so the child’s vital organs can be taken for transplant.
The move was revealed at a medical conference where NHS transplant surgeons said they wanted to harvest more organs from babies across Britain to address a dire shortage.
Dr Niaz Ahmad said: ‘ We are looking at rolling it out as a viable source of organ transplantation nationally.’
Mothers would give birth in the normal way and once doctors had certified the infant dead, its vital organs would be removed.
However, some babies could be certified brain dead but their bodies kept alive by artificial ventilation. Surgeons could then remove organs when they are completely fresh, maximising what can be used and the chance of successful transplant.
Their kidneys, hearts, lungs, livers and other organs would save the lives of other children – but some of them can also be used for adults languishing on transplant waiting lists.
Last night, leading NHS transplant surgeon Mr Ahmad told the Mail on Sunday: ‘All the donations that have happened [so far], those pregnant mothers have approached NHS Blood and Transplant themselves.’
But he added: ‘Now there is a real potential for using these organs [and] we are going to discuss whether it is an option, somehow, to tell women in this situation, that organ donation is an option.’
He stressed donation would not be raised when a woman was still deciding whether or not to have an abortion – and said that nobody would be compelled to decide to donate their baby’s organs.
More than 7,000 people across Britain are currently waiting for an organ transplant, and three of them die every day. Many sick children die before a suitable organ becomes available, and Britain has to rely on baby organs being flown in from abroad.
Now doctors and nurses will be trained to raise the issue of organ donation with parents of babies with this and other fatal defects.
In 2014, 3,735 women giving an Irish address travelled to England for an abortion for various reasons.
Gaye Edwards, the founder of Termination for Medical Reasons Ireland, said every woman would have her thoughts on the prospect.
She said: ‘Some people would have reservations. And for other people they would think something
‘Something good could come from this tragedy’ ‘The priority must be the patient and the baby’
good could come from this awful thing that happened to their baby.
‘When you talk to relations of organ donors, under normal donation circumstances, they say that something good came from a tragedy.’
Cora Sherlock from the Pro-Life Movement, said: ‘The priority must be the patient, the family and the baby. There is something disturbing about the idea of saying to a mother to let her baby grow until the organs are developed enough so we can harvest them.’
In the last two years only 11 babies under two months have become organ donors. But doctors believe the change in the rules could raise that figure to around 100 a year.