By Sola Ogundipe

Lifeline

Many people take having a child for granted and assume that, when the time is right, they will have a baby with the one they love. However, for some couples, things are not as straightforward and they have to go through many hurdles before getting the child of their dreams. Thousands of Nigerian couples had had no option other than to go through IVF. But why don’t people talk about IVF babies?

One Sunday afternoon in August 2013, a number of couples got together at the Lagos waters for a boat cruise. The couples all had one thing in common. They had experienced the challenge of infertility at one point or the order, but had become proud parents of their own biological children courtesy of the Assisted Reproduction Techniques, ART, they benefited from.

After a good lunch and entertainment by a dance troupe, a question came up. “Why don’t people talk about IVF even when they have benefitted from it? What are we going to do about it?”

There and then they collectively decided to come together with a voice to talk about IVF and to create awareness in the society.

In the months that followed, some of them met, deliberated and agreed to register an NGO that would be….That was how the Fertility Advocate Awareness Initiative, FAAI, was born.

About three years later, in October 2016, during the formal launch of the Fertility Advocate Awareness Initiative, FAAI, at the Civic Centre in Lagos, this same question was repeated when several couples that had benefitted from IVF, their children, friends, families and well wishers, gathered at the official launch of FAAI. Why do parents who had their babies through IVF often hide this fact?

”If you laughed at me when I did not have a child, why laugh at me now because I have a child through IVF?  The process of getting the child through IVF is legal, I have not stolen a child, I have not bought a child, I have achieved pregnancy through advancement in technology, so why should I be ashamed?”

•Nordica’s IVF children

This remark by Mr Omoi Evborokhai, is food for thought. Evborokhai, who is President of the FAAI, dismissed the stigmatisation and discrimination that is often associated with IVF children.  “I can boast of my child because my child is expensive, very expensive. I have spent money and earned every kobo spent on the child, so my head should be high up there and not bowed down. That should not arise anyhow.

“We are proud of our babies, they bring joy to us, they complete our families and we are proud to talk about fertility treatment at anywhere and anytime. IVF babies are not inferior because IVF is special and brings joy to the families. IVF babies are normal, my baby walked when all children her age started school and is doing fantastically… she is doing beautifully….”

Members of FAAI, Folasade Akiode, Funmi Osifajulo, Obierika Uju,  Bimbo Oliyasade, Oluwakemi Oshinloye among others, agreed with Evborokhai.

In the view of Deputy President, FAAI, and mother of the 1st IVF baby at Nordica, such as Francesca Onwudijo, the babies are perfectly normal. Francesca Onwudejo. “My child is the 1st in Nordica. I had him 12 years ago and carried him full term. He is normal, he used to have fever like any other child, crawled like other babies, grew teeth like any other and started school normally. He is in JSS 2, and is the same age with his peers; he talks and behaves like every other normal child. He is not ashamed about being called IVF baby.

“FAAI is a special thing for me because it was something that many people said was impossible but it has been through in Nigeria, said Dr Abayomi Ajayi, the Medical Director/ CEO, Nordica Lagos, Abuja and Asaba.

“FAAI started as an informal group of couples (men and women) who had undergone successful IVF treatment at Nordica Fertility Centre which primarily focused on providing a support mechanism for people who were about to or already in the process of undergoing fertility treatment at Nordica.

“FAAI recognized that considering the pressure most people face in deciding to undergo fertility treatment from religious, societal, and cultural perspectives, it was important to provide them with the right information about what the various treatments entail and possible result. It is important to stress that pregnancies resulting from IVF or other fertility treatments are like pregnancies from regular conception.

“For me in particular, I am most delighted to speak about the growing awareness this small group has brought to the fore in helping address the stigma and erroneous misconceptions about IVF and other assisted reproductive treatments. Members of this group have equally helped in correcting the notion that IVF children are not normal, because they have together with their children, helped display that IVF children are perfectly normal children.”

According to Ajayi, children born through IVF are as normal as normal can be. “If you interact with them, you will agree. We are carrying out our study and look at the neurological developments of children born from IVF and compare with the children born normally.

“ I have been talking to a paediatrician that is trained and is interested in that area and we are going to be looking at some of the children born in Africa and compare with the non IVF children.  I have a feeling that some of these children are brighter than their counterparts.

We want more people to identify with them. We do not want them to be lonely because that is also one of the things that can make them lose inertest. We have over 1,500 babies and we want more people to join them so we can go on to propagate this gospel.”

It is widely believed that research may just be documenting some of the lasting effects the procedure  may be having on early development. While these concerns rage, Ajayi does not agree with the notion that IVF makes children more vulnerable to cognitive or other developmental issues.

He remarked that, scientifically, IVF babies are no more unusual than normally conceived babies. “Some say there is nothing, some say they may inherit their parents’ infertility, of course that may not be farfetched because many causes of infertility are inherited. So it is possible for that one to happen.

“Some talk about their intelligence but nothing unusual has been found on that aspect; these are just anecdotal. As far these things go, IVF babies are normal babes. When it comes to any cognitive our developmental issue, it is difficult to say for certain that IVF babies are unusually different when compared to normal babies.

“From what I have seen, children conceived through IVF tend to be precocious. But this is not backed up with scientific fact. I have seen more than 1,500 of these babies born at our centres in Nordica and there hasn’t been any fact to suggest a risk.”

Ajayi recalled that a study was conducted in Nordica during which 250 clients that had dropped out of IVF programme were interviewed and we saw clearly that one of the major problems why people dropped out was because there was no emotional support, and that made us do a few things.

“We have fully trained fertility counsellors because we saw that emotional support was essential. We also learned that the support could be professional and also come from those affected and their families. The members of FAAI are sharing their experiences with other people. I know doctors that do not share their experiences, and if we continue with this stigmatisation, we are going to open up ourselves to the quacks.

“The hush hush about IVF does not augur well for fertility treatment. The more we allow hush hush the more there will be quackery, and that is why we are seeing how we can propagate this new gospel of infertility treatment, fighting infertility.

So are there major biological differences between children conceived through  IVF,  and children conceived normally? Are there significant birth defects people need to be aware of and understand better when considering IVF as a pregnancy option for infertility treatment? These are pertinent questions still making the rounds all over the world today, particularly in Nigeria, even as Louise Brown, the first baby ever to be successfully conceived through IVF, is now into her late 30s.

As more babies born through IVF are reaching their mid-30s, medical and scientific experts have begun investigating more significant issues concerning IVF children and probing what the lasting legacy of IVF might be.