Men Who Hired Surrogate Withheld Medical Care From Child
William Harris Although surrogacy can offer many benefits to those with the desire to be parents, the gestational period is certainly no small feat for surrogates bound by contracts with little room for autonomy. However, just as with natural pregnancies, things don't always go as planned.
One couple stirred a debate after requesting the surrogate terminate her pregnancy when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Conservative commentator Lila Rose posted a thread shedding light on recent events where, upon delivery, two prospective fathers denied critical medical care for their prematurely born child via surrogacy.
“Two men hired surrogate Brittney Pearson to create their ‘dream family,’” tweeted Rose. “By the end of the process, a 25-week-old baby boy was murdered.”
At 22 weeks gestation, the California surrogate received the dreadful news that she was diagnosed with HER2+ breast cancer. Upon receiving the diagnosis, Pearson’s doctors suggested a plan where she would undergo a more compatible form of chemotherapy that would not pose any safety concerns during the pregnancy, which would allow them to proceed with a labor induction at 34 weeks gestation.
According to the Daily Mail, Pearson alleges that the prospective fathers were supportive of her receiving treatment and moving forward with the pregnancy.
Photo: Shutterstock / Pixel-Shot
Plans shifted drastically, however, when doctors found that Pearson’s cancer had spread much further than they’d previously anticipated and would require a stronger form of chemotherapy to fight against it. This new revelation led to the estrangement between the unnamed couple and Pearson after the prospective parents demanded that the baby be terminated.
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The couple felt that delivering prior to 34 weeks would pose a series of critical health problems for the baby.
On Twitter, Rose shared a screengrab of the email Pearson’s uncle sent regarding the situation to Jennifer Lahl, president of The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network, known for her stringent views against commercialized surrogacy.
Photo: @LilaGraceRose / Twitter
The anti-surrogacy group made unverified claims that upon Pearson’s request to adopt the baby after carrying it to term, the couple refused due to the unwanted notion of having their “DNA out there” and being raised by someone else.
“I would have been there, I would have given him every chance of survival, I had people ready to help,” said Pearson.
Eventually, she managed to find a hospital that would deliver the baby at 25 weeks; however, the prospective fathers who legally had ownership over the child denied it life-saving care, resulting in the infant dying shortly after birth.
After having successfully completed one round of surrogacy in the past, Pearson allegedly shared that her experience as a surrogate made her feel like “a rented-out uterus” this time around.
Rose wrapped up her thread addressing the situation, as well as surrogacy in general, as “fundamentally wrong,” further adding, “[Surrogacy] enables people to act as if they are entitled to other people’s reproductive abilities - the body of the woman whose womb they are renting. It also treats children like property to be bought, sold, and killed. This case is just another example of why.”
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People are split on where the blame lies for the death of the 25-week-old child.
While many were appalled by the couple’s alleged neglect towards the 25-week-old child, people still felt that the issue wasn’t surrogacy but rather the constraining laws surrounding it.
In response to Rose’s thread, one woman revealed that her inability to conceive has made her empathetic toward those who choose the path of surrogacy despite being unable to afford it. She states, “Surrogacy can be an incredible gift; I wouldn’t allow 1 horror story to distract from the hundreds of beautiful stories that result in a child being raised in a loving and giving home.”
Another person wrote, “Murder is fundamentally wrong. Surrogacy brings beautiful, wanted children into existence, to the benefit of everyone involved in the voluntary arrangement. It’s a positive good, and you’d think 'pro-lifers' who live up to the name would celebrate it.”
“Surrogacy is not ‘fundamentally wrong’. However, there need to be laws written to protect the surrogate and the unborn child in such scenarios,” said another.
Others expressed strong views against any form of gestational arrangement and even blamed the surrogate for being involved. “I have very little sympathy for Brittany,” read one Tweet. “What the heck did she think two men would choose to do in this situation. the pregnancy was completely out of Gods natural order.”
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Surrogacy certainly has its lengthy list of pros and cons.
For intended parents seeking out the opportunity to fulfill their dreams of raising children who otherwise wouldn’t be able to, surrogacy is certainly one way to do it. Although adoption can arguably serve the same purpose, some feel that surrogacy enables prospective parents to maintain genetic connections with their children.
Alternatively, surrogacy can have its share of disadvantages as well. Such as in the case between Pearson and the prospective fathers, gestational surrogacy is a complicated process that, if disrupted, can make legally binding contracts among parties harder to navigate.
On top of that, instances like these raise legitimate concerns surrounding the negative implications of having a child via commercialized surrogacy along with the surrogate’s right to autonomy.
In spite of everything, however, Pearson still believes surrogacy can be a good alternative for hopeful parents. “I wouldn’t do it again, but I still think surrogacy has a great time and place but [prospective] families need to be screened a little more.”
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Xiomara Demarchi is a writer based in New York covering news and entertainment for YourTango’s editorial team. Keep up with them on Instagram.
