男性同性愛者専用の「不妊治療」、米国で登場

Gay male parents get dedicated fertility program
By Jill Serjeant
Wed Mar 14, 7:06 PM ET
Reuters

A Los Angeles fertility clinic has launched what it says is the first dedicated program for gay men wanting to become parents.

The Fertility Institutes, already a pioneer in the controversial area of gender selection, said it was responding to huge demand from gay male couples around the world who want their own biological children but are often thwarted by prejudice and bureaucracy.

"There are a lot of centers that dibble and dabble in this. But we are the only program for gay men that has psychological, legal, medical, surrogates, donors and patients all taken care of in one place," Dr Jeffrey Steinberg, director of The Fertility Institutes, told Reuters in an interview.

"The demand is incredible. The United States has always been busy but we are seeing more and more demand from abroad."

The last few years have seen a large increase in the number of gay men who want to father children using surrogate mothers rather than opting for adoption, which is difficult or impossible for homosexuals or lesbians in several U.S. states.

Gay male couples seeking parenthood usually have to go to several different agencies to find surrogate mothers, egg donors, lawyers and medical treatment.

Potential surrogate mothers often opt out when they discover the couple seeking a child is gay, partly because of perceptions that homosexuals have a higher risk of diseases such as hepatitis, syphilis and the HIV virus.

Steinberg gets consent from surrogates up front, tests the fathers-to-be for HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, and freezes their sperm for six months as an extra safeguard.

Steinberg has already treated about 70 gay male couples while perfecting the program. Some 40 percent were Americans, with the rest from Britain, Germany, China, Canada, Italy, Brazil and South Africa.

The average cost is about $60,000 -- and three-quarters of gay couples pay extra to choose the sex of their baby. Gender selection of babies is illegal in most countries except the United States.

"We thought they were all going to come in and want boys, but about 65 percent want male and the others want girls," Steinberg said.

Focus on the Family, an influential conservative advocacy group with evangelical ties, said it saw several problems with such schemes.

"These clinics are in business for profit and the losers will be the children because these are children who will not have access to a mother. ... It is an intentionally motherless home," said Focus spokesperson Carrie Gordon Earll.

Steinberg said he was braced for controversy after going public with the program but hoped to ride the storm.

"This is new. It is challenging. We understand people are a little intimidated, a little frightened by it," he said. "It just takes time to get used to things."

Data from the 2000 U.S. census showed there were some 301,000 unmarried male couples in the United States. Figures for those adopting or having biological children were unavailable.



男性同性愛者専用の「不妊治療」、米国で登場

　【ロサンゼルス　１４日　ロイター】　ロサンゼルスにある不妊治療の専門クリニックで、子供を欲しがる男性の同性愛者を対象にしたプログラムを開始した。

　男女産み分けの分野でこれまでに先駆的な役割を果たしてきたクリニック「Fertility Institutes」が、血のつながった子供を欲しがる世界中の同性愛カップルからの要望に応えて、同プログラムに乗り出した。

　同クリニック理事長のジェフリー・スタインバーグ医師はロイターに対し「（男性の同性愛者の不妊治療に関し）多くの機関がいろいろ取り組んでいる。しかし、心理的、法的、医学的な見地に立ち、代理母やドナー、患者などすべてを包括的にケアしているプログラムは当クリニックのものだけだ。要望は非常に多い」と話した。

　米国ではここ数年、子供を欲しがる同性愛カップルが、養子縁組よりも代理母に頼るケースが急増している。これらのカップルは通常、子供を授かるために、いくつかの仲介業者を通じて代理母や卵子提供者、弁護士などを探さなければならない。

　しかし男性の同性愛者が子供を欲していると代理母が分かると、肝炎やＨＩＶといった病気の危険性があると考えて、代理母が手を引くケースも少なくない。スタインバーグ医師は、事前に代理母から同意を得て、男性側にもＨＩＶなどの感染がないかを検査する。

　同医師はすでに約７０組の同性愛カップルを治療。約４０％は米国人だが、そのほかは、英国、ドイツ、中国、イタリアなどからの患者だという。

　治療費の平均は約６万ドル（約７００万円）だが、約７５％のカップルは追加料金を払って男女産み分けを希望するという。男女の産み分けは、米国を除き、多くの国で違法とされている。