IVF and its accessories

The scientific industry recently lost another prestigious pioneer in the person of Professor Robert Edwards - The man whom together with his fellow late colleague Dr Patrick Steptoe bore forth Louise brown via In vitro Fertilisation (IVF). 

There is no doubt that this ingenious discovery has gone down as one of the greatest scientific advancements’ of all time. As life changing as the birth of IVF has been to many the journey remains a predicament to a few.

Stringent rules such as selection criteria coupled with cost means for many seeking treatment via IVF, the miracle remains a distant dream. 

Qualification criteria such as weight, age, medical condition and number of children automatically disqualify some less fortunate candidates. Most couples’ in the UK are offered 3 treatment cycles but for some the traumatic experience means that the journey ends before the third attempt.

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I once met a young couple who had been trying to conceive for over a decade with no success. Tests revealed that the lady had fertility issues. In her case, this meant that she did not produce enough eggs hence reducing her chances of conception. IVF was offered and they finally found a ray of hope.  What they did not anticipate was the accessories that came along with it.

Hospital appointments, pre-medication, blood tests, scans and 2-3 times daily injections all seemed overwhelming. But when you find yourself in such a predicament, inconvenience is the last of your worries. Through all the anxiety the D day finally arrives and yet you can’t quiet grasp on to “hope” for fear of the unknown.  Low and behold at the first attempt the procedure had to be cancelled as her ovaries had other plans. After all the build-up of emotions only to be turned away, the couple held their own and returned home to start the preparation all over again.  The next appointment arrived, this time eggs were successfully harvested but the procedure failed. After the second cycle failed they decided to accept their fate and refused a third cycle. Understandably, emotional trauma can be very eerie.

Professor Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe have indeed transformed the face of conception and brought hope to many. For the young couple their hope of child birth was short-lived.  The success rates over the years however continue to rise and many more clinics around the world now offer the procedure. Needless to say, cost remains a major barrier.

As the life of another great scientist comes to an end, their legacy lives on and there is the need to honor this miracle by making IVF more accessible and the process less daunting to the unfortunate few craving for a  chance at child birth. 

Further information about IVF on the NHS may be accessed here. 

DNA @ 60

From DNA to gene manipulation the events from 60 years ago today have gone a long way to revolutionise medical applications by exploring our genes.  It was on 25^th April 1953 that John Watson and Francis Crick published their discovery of the DNA structure in the nature journal for which they later received a Nobel Prize for. Although rarely mentioned there were other contributors to this breakthrough in the persons of Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins with the latter also being recognised for his contributions but not the former due to her passing away at the early age of 37 to ovarian cancer. 

With the structure of the DNA deciphered, scientist have since moved on to complete the human genome and given birth to a host of DNA applications.

Thanks to DNA profiling it is now possible to trace relations, prove paternity/maternity and solve crimes. Gene testing can now help identify an individual’s susceptibility to a disease. The applications of gene therapy and recombinant DNA technology in medicine and from which other technologies have evolved remain endless. 

So raise your glasses to Francis, John, Maurice and Rosalind as we celebrate the 60^th anniversary of the double helix and take a moment to ponder over what the future holds for DNA manipulation and medicine.  

Invest in the future: Defeat Malaria

Dating back to over billions of years ago malaria has predominantly hovered over the continent of Africa with cases reported in Europe and North America. Over the centuries, the latter continents have eradicated cases whiles the problem persists in Africa. Although no longer an epidemic, malaria continues to be a burden, taking the lives of millions with a child reported to die every minute from the disease. This fatality is attributed to poverty in the region.

As we celebrate "World Malaria Day", join in the global campaign and take a moment to invest in the future of this cause to help defeat malaria. 

Find out how you can help here

For more information on world Malaria day, visit WHO

Celebrating Art

Google tells me today (April 15th), is designated World Arts Day (WAD). So here's to wishing all artists a happy world arts day.

April 15th =  the birthday of Leonardo da vinci

Discover more here