Few Singaporean sperm donors due to fear of incest

[MarrickG]

SINGAPORE -The recent case of the in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment mix-up at Thomson Fertility Centre cast the spotlight on assisted reproductive treatments and their challenges in Singapore.

One major challenge is the lack of sperm donors. A recent report in The Straits Times revealed that there have been only eight sperm donors at Singapore General Hospital in the past five years.

Professor P.C. Wong from National University Hospital was quoted in the same article as saying that for every sperm donation in Singapore, there would be about eight couples who need it.

He says the reason for the shortage of sperm donors could be because Singaporeans are not altruistic enough.

There is no monetary gain from being a sperm donor. Moreover, the process of donating sperm is a lot more tedious than most imagine, requiring interviews and multiple medical checkups and tests.

However, a report in Shin Min Daily yesterday highlighted another reason - many men are worried that donating sperm to another couple might result in incest among their offspring in future.

An informal survey by AsiaOne showed that this was indeed a concern among Singaporean men.

"Singapore is so small - there's a high chance that your biological child might meet your own children in future," noted a civil servant in his thirties, who declined to be named. "What if they fall in love and get married, not knowing that they are actually half-siblings?"

This fear of incest, or consanguinity (the marriage of close relatives), seems especially real, given Singapore's small size. However, doctors have described this in previous news reports as only a 'remote possibility'.

Another respondent said he felt that IVF was 'unnatural'. He points out that there are other options for childless couples, such as adoption, but also says that a couple has the right to seek fertility treatment, just as men have the right to choose not to be sperm donors if they are not comfortable with the idea.

 

[Glaringly]

Fear of incest?

Who's the donor and who is the recipient? Are they both selected from a small pool of scholars and MIW only families.

 

[Orion]

Doctor says remote possiblities...there is still a possibility. How cant common people excerise more common sense than these so call educated people?

Isolated case...

Once in every 50 years...

HDB is so affordable, cheaper than Japan (Yeah right, for 99 years, Japan has none)... Try comparing private land housing with Japan and u know how expensive Sg is.

 

[bodycells]

should be fear of sinkie genetic traits being pass on to the future generation. At least this people have the thought of containing these disgusting genepool and dun let it run wild.

 

[streetsmart73]

Fear of incest?

Who's the donor and who is the recipient? Are they both selected from a small pool of scholars and MIW only families.

hi there

1. aiyoh! sheepishland is to have another batch of 25 new sheep.
2. most of them should be male, get them spare its assets mah!
3. pay so much! must "donate' something back loh.
4. but definitely, the offsprings are damn ugly ones.