The latest
celebrity rumour is that superstar Shah Rukh Khan and wife Gauri are expected
to welcome their third child via a surrogate last few months. This news once
again focuses attention on India's $450 million reproductive industry, which
has been attracting infertile Western couples due to relaxed legislation and
low costs ($100,000 in the US compared to $25,000 in India — including clinic
charges, travel and lodging, the surrogate's fee and lawyer's bills).
In recent
years, the number of infertile couples or childless couples increases very
rapidly. Today every one couple out of seven is infertile due to any of the
infertility causes. Some people have myth that by giving time or relaxing
infertility can be overcome, however the fact is that fertility issues are
medical in nature and there are effective treatments available for these
problems.
Surrogacy
refers to an arrangement between a woman who agrees to carry and deliver
another person or couple's baby for a fee after a previously created embryo has
been transferred into her in a clinical set-up. The sperm and/or eggs can be
the commissioning parents' or sourced from donors. For some couples battling
infertility, this may be the only route to parenthood. Experts suggest you ask
the right questions before making a choice.
The times
when medical advances like IVF was not available, the only option in third
party reproduction is traditional surrogacy where a woman (surrogate mother) is
artificially inseminated with the sperm from the intended parent and the woman
is a biological mother to the baby she is carrying. Through traditional
surrogacy, there is a 50% genetic tie to that child and that is the reason why
these days most of the intended couples prefer gestational surrogacy that
allows intended parents to use their own genetic makeup (egg or sperm) and
surrogate mother just assist them by renting her uterus for nine months or up
to the delivery of the child.
Counselling
will help you figure if your infertile status can be treated. Surrogacy is
usually suggested if a uterine factor is involved, as in the case of genital
tuberculosis or if the uterus is deformed because of multiple fibroids or in
rare conditions when the uterus is congenitally absent. Women who suffer
repeated miscarriages or have severe diabetes and hypertension can also resort
to surrogacy.
Examine your
financial stability, family support structure and relationship with your
spouse. Understand the medical procedure and have realistic expectations. It is
a myth that surrogacy always results in a baby. A successful surrogacy depends
on the age of the biological mother, quality and quantity of her eggs, the
husband's sperm parameters, and the nutrition and health status of the
surrogate and the track record of the IVF centre. Since the surrogate is
fertile, having had children of her own, it is adequate if two good quality
embryos are inserted, if the genetic mother's age is less than 37. If older,
consider placing up to three embryos. Transferring more has no advantage, and
can jeopardize the chances of a healthy singleton pregnancy. All guidelines
judiciously reduce the risk of caesareans and obstetric emergencies.
India does
not have a legislation governing surrogacy; only guidelines. It's the surrogacy
agreement that governs the contractual relation between the parties.
Anticipated problems include the surrogate claiming the child as her own or
enforcing parental visitation or custodial rights. Further, the surrogate's
husband may claim the child under section 112 of the Evidence Act, which
highlights the presumption of paternity, i.e. when a child is born during the
continuation of a marriage, the husband of the woman giving birth is presumed
to be father of the child.
Intended Parents would have to advise for secure a
well-drafted surrogacy agreement, get the surrogate and her husband counselled
in their local language and make sure she understands her legal rights and
liabilities. These will help you to ensure an iron-clad contract: name and
details of parties; why does the party to the agreement propose surrogacy;
details about the surrogate; the exact intention between the parties while
entering the agreement; the type of surrogacy; proper compensation clause;
relinquishment of rights by the surrogate mother; details with regard to the
compensation in times of unexpected mis happenings to the surrogate; and clarity
that the child's custody with the intended parents alone is legal custody.
The dialogue
you have over regulations and rights should always involve the surrogate and
egg donor. Consistency and transparency in contracts is a significant step
towards ensuring fairness and granting the surrogate negotiating power with the
agent. During process, we discovered that there tends to be a discrepancy in
the amount the commissioning parents are asked to pay the surrogate, and the
fee she finally receives. The contract they are made to sign lists a
significantly lower amount. Your intervention can prevent this. Ask yourself if
the installment plan for the surrogate is fair typically.
Popularity of
Surrogacy
From last
few years, surrogacy is gaining amazing popularity among infertile couples,
especially for those who can't conceive children in the natural way or are
unable to get pregnant through other assisted reproductive techniques. The very
most common reason why people opt for a surrogate is when the woman has absence
of uterus. Sometimes it can be absent since birth or may have been surgically
removed. Also woman with multiple IVF failure for unexplained reasons and those
who have suffered multiple miscarriages, gay couples and single men, generally
opt this effective treatment option to enjoy parenthood.
Surrogate
can be anyone including a sister, mother or close friend of a couple or also
someone known or unknown to the couple, who is ready to her womb. Women who
agree to become surrogates may do so for compassionate reasons.
Guidelines for
Surrogacy technique
Certain
guidelines have been laid down to try to minimize the misuse of the surrogacy
arrangement. As per the Indian Surrogacy Law, a surrogate mother needs to sign
a contract which should specify that the child will become the legitimate
adopted child of the intended couples. Surrogacy technique has received quite a
lot of bad history recently, especially when there is a dispute over the baby
between the intended parents and the surrogate and that is the reason why many
people are worried about the possibilities of the surrogacy being misused.
It's a fact
that surrogacy is a hope for many childless couples, but here it is important
to remember that this technique does offer one method of achieving parenthood
to only those couples who could never have a baby by any other means of
pregnancy. The path of surrogacy is a rocky one and also requires a lot much
thought. Perhaps it is the most complex and difficult way to achieve
parenthood, but still only option to a few couples, so they must be careful to
choose a certified agency that will provide them with all information they
require.
