Donor conceived person

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A donor offspring, or donor conceived person, is conceived via the donation of sperm (sperm donation) or ova (egg donation), or both (either from two separate donors or from a couple).

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For donor conceived people, the biological parent(s) who "donated" sperm or eggs (though most commonly "donors" are financially compensated so "donor", while the most common term is a misnomer) are not legally recognized as parents and do not appear on their birth certificate. In many countries it is common for donor conceived people to be given no identifying information about their donor, however in some countries anonymous sperm and/or egg donation has been made illegal due to concerns for the medical and emotional needs of donor conceived people. [1] Even in cases with anonymous donors, donor conceived people are sometimes able to connect with biological parent(s) and/or half siblings conceived from the same donor using DNA testing or through online registries for donor conceived people.

With the significant increase in the numbers of donor-conceived individuals (38,910 live babies were born in 2005 as a result of 134,260 ART cycles performed at reporting U.S. clinics in 2005, compared with 20,659 babies born as a result of 64,036 ART cycles in 1996), many have questioned the ethics surrounding the technologies and human decisions surrounding donor conception, and there has been plenty of controversy. For example, the term "Snowflake baby" was coined in reference to unused frozen embryos (left over from other couples' attempts to conceive through in vitro fertilization) that have been "adopted" by families. Abortion opponents tend to support such adoptions.

"ART Cycles" are not accurate as many people (<40%) who use IVF (egg donation) do not report their births, [2] and that there is no tracking or record keeping required for children born from sperm donation. Estimates of 30,000-60,000 often used are from estimates made with incomplete records from the mid 1980s. [3]

Psychological and social

The psychological and social impacts of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) on donor-conceived children and their families has gained a great deal of interest in recent years as this population has continued to grow. An increasing number of family-support organizations strongly encourage parents to openly discuss their children's origins, whether through donor insemination or following treatment with donated gametes, because research suggest that donor conceived people who learn the nature of their conception at a young age do not suffer psychologically but that those who learn about their conception at a later age may feel lied to or betrayed. [4]

For most sperm or egg recipients, the choice between anonymous sperm or egg donor and a non-anonymous one is generally not of major importance. [5] For some donor conceived children, on the other hand, it may be psychologically burdensome not having the possibility of contacting or knowing almost nothing about the donor. [6] Thus far, studies have found that a significant number of donor conceived children want information about their donor [5] [7]

Donor and sibling tracking

There are donor sibling registries matching genetic siblings and donors. However, with modern information technology, there are other ways of getting information.

One study estimated that approximately 67% of donor conceived children in adolescence with an identity-release donor plan on contacting him when they are eighteen years old. [8]

Registries

Donor registration facilitates donor conceived people, sperm donors, and egg donors establishing contact with genetic relatives. They are mostly used by donor conceived people to find genetic half-siblings from the same egg or sperm donor.

Some donors are non-anonymous, but most are anonymous, i.e. most donor conceived people don't know the identity of their donors. Still, they may be able to obtain unique donor numbers or known donor characteristics, e.g. hair, eye, and skin colors, from fertility clinics to find matched genetic half-siblings.

The largest donor registry is the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR) however there are also many other registries and sometimes registries for siblings set up by the clinic themselves.

Clinics or sperm banks

Clinics and sperm banks facilitate the transaction that allows for prospective parents to become pregnant with donated gametes. They recruit and screen donors and advertise their product to prospective parents. Their position as a middleman is what makes anonymous sperm donation possible, though many clinics and sperm banks also offer non-anonymous donors, where donor conceived people may get the identity of their donors. The most common type of non-anonymous donor is an identity-release donor, which allows offspring to receive identifying information (such as name, phone number, and/or email address) upon their 18th birthday but there are also donors who share identifying information from the beginning. Identity release donors can have some issues, as the donor’s contact information may change between the donation and the child’s 18th birthday or the donor may pass away.

Many people fear that if anonymous donation is made illegal, the number of donors will decrease and there will not be enough supply however, an Australian study concluded that potential donors who would still be willing to donate without a guarantee of anonymity were not automatically more open to contact with offspring. [9] Most potential donors would be willing to meet offspring in a single contact. [9] In addition after anonymous donation was banned in the UK, donations actually increased [10]

DNA testing

Due to the advent of genetic genealogy and DNA databases, even sperm donors who have not initiated contact through a registry are now increasingly being traced by their offspring. In the current era there can be no such thing as guaranteed anonymity as it is now possible for "anonymous" sperm donors to be identified by their offspring. [11] Possibly the first such case was in 2005, when it was revealed in New Scientist magazine that a fifteen-year-old had used information from a DNA test and the Internet to identify and contact his sperm donor. [12]

In 2018, it was reported that DNA testing has led to a significant increase in donor-conceived people finding their siblings and sperm donors. [13]

Controversy

Within groups of donor conceived people there is controversy regarding the practice of donor conception and anonymity. Some donor conceived people feel frustrated with the circumstances of their conception, particularly if they were conceived anonymously, because they wish to learn more about their biological family but they find themselves without the means to do so. They may feel that their parents, who often chose donor conception over adoption because of desire for a biological connection, are hypocritical in choosing an anonymous donor and preventing them from connecting to biological relatives. [14] [15] On the other hand, some primarily feel grateful that donor conception allowed for their existence and are less interested in the biological family. And yet others don't consider it much or feel neutral. Overall however, most donor conceived people are at least somewhat interested in their biological family and believe that the fertility industry needs greater regulation. [16]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">In vitro fertilisation</span> Assisted reproductive technology procedure

In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process of fertilisation where an egg is combined with sperm in vitro. The process involves monitoring and stimulating an individual's ovulatory process, removing an ovum or ova from their ovaries and letting sperm fertilise them in a culture medium in a laboratory. After the fertilised egg (zygote) undergoes embryo culture for 2–6 days, it is transferred by catheter into the uterus, with the intention of establishing a successful pregnancy.

A parent is a caregiver of the offspring in their own species. In humans, a parent is the caretaker of a child. A biological parent is a person whose gamete resulted in a child, a male through the sperm, and a female through the ovum. Biological parents are first-degree relatives and have 50% genetic meet. A female can also become a parent through surrogacy. Some parents may be adoptive parents, who nurture and raise an offspring, but are not biologically related to the child. Orphans without adoptive parents can be raised by their grandparents or other family members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority</span>

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department of Health and Social Care in the United Kingdom. It is a statutory body that regulates and inspects all clinics in the United Kingdom providing in vitro fertilisation (IVF), artificial insemination and the storage of human eggs, sperm or embryos. It also regulates human embryo research.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assisted reproductive technology</span> Methods to achieve pregnancy by artificial or partially artificial means

Assisted reproductive technology (ART) includes medical procedures used primarily to address infertility. This subject involves procedures such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), cryopreservation of gametes or embryos, and/or the use of fertility medication. When used to address infertility, ART may also be referred to as fertility treatment. ART mainly belongs to the field of reproductive endocrinology and infertility. Some forms of ART may be used with regard to fertile couples for genetic purpose. ART may also be used in surrogacy arrangements, although not all surrogacy arrangements involve ART. The existence of sterility will not always require ART to be the first option to consider, as there are occasions when its cause is a mild disorder that can be solved with more conventional treatments or with behaviors based on promoting health and reproductive habits.

Embryo donation is one disposition option for users of in vitro fertilisation with remaining fresh or frozen embryos. It is defined as the giving—generally without compensation—of embryos remaining after in vitro fertilization procedures to recipients for procreative implantation or research. Most IVF users with supernumerary embryos make embryo donation decisions after completing their families or discontinuing use of in vitro fertilization. Recipients of embryos donated for procreative implantation typically plan to transfer fresh or frozen embryos into a prepared uterus in order to facilitate pregnancy and childbirth. Recipients of embryos donated for research typically use them for clinical training, quality improvement research, or human embryonic stem cell research.

Third-party reproduction or donor-assisted reproduction is any human reproduction in which DNA or gestation is provided by a third party or donor other than the one or two parents who will raise the resulting child. This goes beyond the traditional father–mother model, and the third party's involvement is limited to the reproductive process and does not extend into the raising of the child. Third-party reproduction is used by couples unable to reproduce by traditional means, by same-sex couples, and by men and women without a partner. Where donor gametes are provided by a donor, the donor will be a biological parent of the resulting child, but in third party reproduction, he or she will not be the caring parent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sperm bank</span> Facility that purchases, stores and sells human semen

A sperm bank, semen bank, or cryobank is a facility or enterprise which purchases, stores and sells human semen. The semen is produced and sold by men who are known as sperm donors. The sperm is purchased by or for other persons for the purpose of achieving a pregnancy or pregnancies other than by a sexual partner. Sperm sold by a sperm donor is known as donor sperm.

Egg donation is the process by which a woman donates eggs to enable another woman to conceive as part of an assisted reproduction treatment or for biomedical research. For assisted reproduction purposes, egg donation typically involves in vitro fertilization technology, with the eggs being fertilized in the laboratory; more rarely, unfertilized eggs may be frozen and stored for later use. Egg donation is a third party reproduction as part of assisted reproductive technology.

The National Gamete Donation Service (NGDS), now known as the SEED Trust, raises awareness of the national shortage of sperm, egg and embryo donors in the UK. Its aim is to recruit donors to alleviate the shortage, and it provides information on egg, sperm and embryo donation and donor recruitment in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It created the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority which is in charge of human embryo research, along with monitoring and licensing fertility clinics in the United Kingdom.

Donor registration facilitates donor conceived people, sperm donors and egg donors to establish contact with genetic kindred. Registries are mostly used by donor conceived people to find out their genetic heritage and to find half-siblings from the same egg or sperm donor. In some jurisdictions donor registration is compulsory, while in others it is voluntary; but most jurisdictions do not have any registration system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donor Sibling Registry</span>

The Donor Sibling Registry is a website and non-profit US organization serving donor offspring, sperm donors, egg donors and other donor conceived people. It was founded in September 2000 by a mother-and-son team, Wendy Kramer and Ryan Kramer of Nederland, Colorado.

Sperm donation laws vary by country. Most countries have laws to cover sperm donations which, for example, place limits on how many children a sperm donor may give rise to, or which limit or prohibit the use of donor semen after the donor has died, or payment to sperm donors. Other laws may restrict use of donor sperm for in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment, which may itself be banned or restricted in some way, such as to married heterosexual couples, banning such treatment to single women or lesbian couples. Donated sperm may be used for insemination or as part of IVF treatment. Notwithstanding such laws, informal and private sperm donations take place, which are largely unregulated.

Fertility tourism is the practice of traveling to another country or jurisdiction for fertility treatment, and may be regarded as a form of medical tourism. One can usually be considered as having fertility issues when they are unable to have a clinical pregnancy after 12 months of attempts with intercourse. Infertility, or the inability to get pregnant, affects about 8-12% of couples looking to conceive or 186 million people globally. In some places, rates of infertility surpass the global average and can go up to 30% depending on the country. Areas with lack of resources, such as assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), tend to correlate with the highest rates of infertility.

Sperm donation is the provision by a man of his sperm with the intention that it be used in the artificial insemination or other 'fertility treatment' of a woman or women who are not his sexual partners in order that they may become pregnant by him. Where pregnancies go to full term, the sperm donor will be the biological father of every baby born from his donations.

Religious response to assisted reproductive technology deals with the new challenges for traditional social and religious communities raised by modern assisted reproductive technology. Because many religious communities have strong opinions and religious legislation regarding marriage, sex and reproduction, modern fertility technology has forced religions to respond.

Accidental incest is sexual activity or marriage between persons who were unaware of a family relationship between them which would be considered incestuous.

LGBT parents in Canada have undergone significant progress in terms of both legal and social acceptance. Same-sex couples who wish for parenthood now enjoy equally the possibilities, responsibilities and rights of opposite-sex couples. Following the nationwide legalization of same-sex marriage in 2005, the number of LGBT families in Canada has increased substantially, paving the way for same-sex couples' aspirations of having their own children. Legal methods of assisted reproduction range from insemination via IVF through to surrogacy arrangements.

Mary Barton was a British obstetrician who, in the 1930s, founded one of the first fertility clinics in England to offer donor insemination. Throughout her career, Barton studied infertility and conception. Her pioneering research and practice were inspired by experience as a medical missionary in India, where she saw the harsh treatment of childless women.

A dibling, a portmanteau of donor sibling, or donor-conceived sibling, or donor-sperm sibling, is one of two or more individuals who are biologically connected through donated eggs or sperm. The term is not favored among some donor-conceived people, who prefer the use of half-sibling.

References

  1. ↑ "Donors | Why Donate? | London Sperm Bank". www.londonspermbank.com. Retrieved 2021-02-08.
  2. ↑ Stephenson, John; Blyth, Eric; Kramer, Wendy; Schneider, Jennifer (2012). "Donor type and parental disclosure following oocyte donation". Asian Pacific Journal of Reproduction. 1 (1): 42–47. doi: 10.1016/S2305-0500(13)60046-9 .
  3. ↑ U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, Artificial Insemination: Practice in the United States: Summary of a 1987 Survey—Background Paper, OTA-13P-BA-48 (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, August 1988).
  4. ↑ Nelson, Margaret; Hertz, Rosanna; Kramer, Wendy (2013). "Making Sense of Donors and Donor Siblings: A Comparison of the Perceptions of Donor-Conceived Offspring in LesbianParent and Heterosexual-Parent Families" (PDF). Contemporary Perspectives in Family Research. 13: 18–20.
  5. 1 2 Ekerhovd E, Faurskov A, Werner C (2008). "Swedish sperm donors have been said to be driven by altruism, but shortage of sperm donors leads to reproductive travelling". Ups. J. Med. Sci. 113 (3): 305–13. doi: 10.3109/2000-1967-241 . PMID   18991243.
  6. ↑ Donor Babies Search for Their Anonymous Fathers. By Craig Malisow. Published on November 04, 2008 at 11:22am
  7. ↑ Telegraph.co.uk: Sperm donors should get cut-price IVF to tackle shortage By Rebecca Smith, Medical Editor in San Francisco. Last Updated: 4:12PM GMT 11 November 2008. This ref, in turn, cites Dr Joanna Sheib from the University of California Davis
  8. ↑ Ilioi, E. C.; Golombok, S. (2014). "Psychological adjustment in adolescents conceived by assisted reproduction techniques: a systematic review". Human Reproduction Update. 21 (1): 84–96. doi:10.1093/humupd/dmu051. ISSN   1355-4786. PMC   4255607 . PMID   25281685.
  9. 1 2 Van Den Broeck, U.; Vandermeeren, M.; Vanderschueren, D.; Enzlin, P.; Demyttenaere, K.; d'Hooghe, T. (2012). "A systematic review of sperm donors: Demographic characteristics, attitudes, motives and experiences of the process of sperm donation". Human Reproduction Update. 19 (1): 37–51. doi: 10.1093/humupd/dms039 . PMID   23146866.
  10. ↑ Day, Michael (2007-05-12). "Number of sperm donors rises despite removal of anonymity in UK". BMJ: British Medical Journal. 334 (7601): 971. doi:10.1136/bmj.39206.514132.DB. ISSN   0959-8138. PMC   1867873 . PMID   17493999.
  11. ↑ DNA = Donors Not Anonymous huffingtonpost.com Published: November 25, 2015
  12. ↑ Anonymous sperm donor traced on internet newscientist.com Published: November 2, 2005
  13. ↑ From sperm donor to 'Dad': When strangers with shared DNA become a family
  14. ↑ "Confessions of a Cryokid". cryokidconfessions.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
  15. ↑ says, W. (2017-08-23). "What Donor Conceived People Think of Donor Conception". Creating a Family. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
  16. ↑ Sabatello, Maya (September 2015). "Regulating Gamete Donation in the U.S.: Ethical, Legal and Social Implications". Laws. 4 (3): 352–376. doi: 10.3390/laws4030352 . ISSN   2075-471X. PMC   4572724 . PMID   26388996.
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