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from the left-the-freezer-door-open-again dept.
University Hospitals has notified about 700 fertility patients and their families that the frozen eggs and embryos they had stored at one of its hospitals may have been damaged over the weekend when the temperature rose in a storage tank.
The problem, in one of two large freezers preserving specimens at the UH Fertility Center housed at the Ahuja Medical Center in Beachwood, was discovered on Sunday morning. It occurred some time after staff left the previous afternoon, according to Patti DePompei, president of UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and MacDonald Women's Hospital.
The liquid nitrogen freezer held about 2,000 egg and embryo specimens, according to Dr. James Liu, chairman of the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at UH Cleveland Medical Center. Some patients had more than one sample stored, and some of the samples were provided as long ago as the 1980's.
Also at Newsweek.
(Score: 2) by Immerman on Saturday March 10 2018, @07:16PM (12 children)
Considering that such things are commonly stored before undergoing fertility-destroying medical treatments, this would seem to be a pretty major deal. How do you make such a thing right by your customers if you just destroyed their "insurance"? A full refund for the storage costs to date would seem like a not unreasonable place to start.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 10 2018, @07:33PM (1 child)
Eggs and sperm from living people may be created from stem cells. It has been shown that sperm can be made from skin. No, this won't be cheap.
Dead people are more trouble. Find the sequence from personal belongings or infer it from close relatives and physical appearance. Take cells from close relatives, then mix and match until all the chromosomes are correct. This may require some engineering work.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 10 2018, @08:12PM
She screamed. Oh, did she scream. But the more she screamed, the more disgusting the man's grin became and the more violence he dispensed; it was a negative feedback loop for the woman, but a very, very positive one for the man. This eventually culminated in a bone-chilling crack.
Minutes later, a bystander spotted a man performing a childish dance near the corpse of a naked woman; he had reached the pinnacle of happiness, causing all who saw him to smile.
(Score: 1) by cocaine overdose on Saturday March 10 2018, @07:40PM
(Score: 2) by takyon on Saturday March 10 2018, @08:02PM
Mother felt "physically ill" after hearing embryos possibly destroyed at fertility center [cbsnews.com]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by Kell on Sunday March 11 2018, @04:57AM (7 children)
This just cuts a knife to my heart. I had cells frozen prior to surgery that rendered me infertile - I've got plenty stored up, but if they were suddenly wiped out... I will never be a parent I don't even want to think of it. Time to start the IVF sooner rather than later, I think.
Scientists ask questions. Engineers solve problems.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Sunday March 11 2018, @06:38AM (4 children)
If you are in that position - then why on earth do you have all of your cells relying on a single point of failure? That point has been made already in this discussion. Demand that half of your cells be maintained in some other location. For added insurance, demand that your cells be stored in 4 or more locations.
Of course, if the aliens invade tomorrow, and nuke us into the stone age, no number of locations on earth will ensure survival. Demand lunar storage!!
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Sunday March 11 2018, @11:53AM
There's a term for that, specifically for cases like this. It's "in one basket".
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 2) by Kell on Monday March 12 2018, @03:37PM (2 children)
You're assuming that this is not something I have already done... I chose my fertility clinic in part because they did offer multiple storage locations for samples. But that doesn't mean that some systemic problem won't effect samples... pays to not be too long about it.
Scientists ask questions. Engineers solve problems.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday March 12 2018, @03:44PM (1 child)
Fair enough. And, of course, even if you aren't relying on - uhh - "fresh eggs" from your own ovaries, the clock is still ticking. For my part, I was 32 when my first son was born. Here I am, almost 62, and the kid still hasn't grown up. I may never know my adult sons.
Bahhh, let me be more fair. My youngest son has matured pretty well. I don't know where he's going yet, but he is going places.
(Score: 2) by Kell on Tuesday March 13 2018, @12:00PM
Unfortunately, I wasn't issued the standard equipment when I was born, so alas my partner and I have to go through a surrogate. Convenient 'cus I'm career-focused, and he'll be a stay-at-home dad... and also convenient because it's not limited by my age (I'm late thirties) - our surrogate is younger. On the down side, it means I won't get that most basic of experiences: carrying my own child. Sigh.
Scientists ask questions. Engineers solve problems.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 11 2018, @04:11PM (1 child)
You won't be a parent if no one will take your sperm either. And supposing you had someone who would, the recipients time window is much shorter than the time some people have had their sperm stored.
Fish or cut bait. You want to be a parent bad enough to end up with a mongoloid?
(Score: 2) by Kell on Monday March 12 2018, @03:39PM
Well, you have no idea what my age or marital status is. Yes, I have a partner for my cells, and no age isn't a factor (at least, not in the near few years). Practically everyone who goes down this path gets educated on the exigencies of the situation.
Scientists ask questions. Engineers solve problems.