5 Startling Considerations of “Massive” Sperm Donation

Recently, there has been much news regarding the birth of children from what seems to be “massive” sperm donations. Allow me to elaborate. Sperm donation is a popular method in which donors give semen to help couples or individuals conceive a baby. This is a blessing for some people who do not have other options for having a baby.

However, sometimes it has brought more surprises than expected. Note the following stories as some examples. 

Sperm Donation Case 1

Cynthia Daily is a social worker living in Washington. She and her partner asked for a sperm donation to conceive a baby, according to The New York Times. After becoming pregnant and having the baby, she decided to track down the children born from the same sperm donor.

Moreover, she wanted her son, not only to know, but to be in touch with their siblings. It had been seven years since she conceived. Unexpectedly she found that there were about 150 children born from her sperm donor.

Here is the main issue. Siblings often live in the same area so much so that experts and parents worry about accidental incest that may occur among them. But there is more. They are also worried about the risks of unintended consanguinity, which can bring inherited issues.

But there is yet another catch. Sperm donors are becoming worried as well, since clinics do not tell them with certainty how many children can result from their donations. And they then surprisingly discover on online registers they could have up to 70 children.

I think you will agree with me when I say that “massive” sperm donations are bringing more surprises than expected. But that is not all. Let’s consider the following case.

Sperm Donation Case 2

It is also possible to find a sperm donor through unregulated online markets. This was the case of Vanessa van Ewijk, a single woman in the Netherlands.

She decided to obtain a sperm donation through the online market, since the fertility clinics were not affordable for her. This was the situation when she found her donor, Mr. Jacob Meijer, a handsome young Dutch musician.

But this is not all. Vanessa got a sperm donation in 2015 for about 200 USD. Then when she was ready to conceive again in 2017, she found the same sperm donor, got pregnant, and gave birth to her second child.

And on top of that, before getting pregnant for the second time, she had known that Mr. Meijer was the biological father of at least 102 children. That included donations to fertility clinics as well as private donations through unregulated markets. That is when she realized the magnitude of the situation. And I am not stopping here.

Donor – Recipient Confrontation

When she talked to her donor, he claimed that he was only trying to help women accomplish their dreams. According to Ms. Ewijk story, he said: “‘I’m just helping women make their biggest wish come true.’” Then Ms. van Ewijk responded: “‘You’re not helping anymore! How do I tell my kids that they could possibly have 300 siblings?’” This was reported by Deccan Herald.

As a matter of fact, Dutch and some international clinics ask donors to sign an agreement stating that they do not donate to other clinics. However, through time many investigations revealed that Mr. Meijer had donated his sperm in as many as thirteen different countries. This was the result; it was estimated that there were anywhere from hundreds to one thousand children born from Mr. Meijer donations.

And this is where people ran into trouble. A woman that also used Mr. Meijer sperm donation said, “I can’t imagine what our son is going to think when he finds out.”

Perplexing Concerns of “Massive” Sperm Donations

1. Number of Allowed Sperm Donations

Around the world, fertility clinics have different criteria regarding how many children a donor can produce and who can donate. Some clinics allow 10, 15 or 20 donations per clinic. Some others set the number of donations allowed per family. In the U.S. the limit to father children is 25 per donor in a population of 800, 000 inhabitants, according to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.

Additionally, the weak regulation of international fertility clinics facilitates “massive” sperm donations. Some international fertility clinics require the donor to not have been a sperm donor at another sperm bank. Unfortunately, it is something they cannot verify through any data base.

People are asking for domestic and international regulations that limit the number of sperm donations per donor, as some countries in Europe are. An international data base should be implemented in following donor donations.

2. Ethical Concerns Regarding “Massive” Sperm Donation

Cases of “massive” sperm donations as those above raise ethical concerns. For instance, children born from sperm donations can be harmed after discovering they have many unknown siblings. For instance, how would they react. How could it affect their identities? What would their perceptions of a family be?  

3. Sperm Donation Anonymity

You do not want to miss this next part. “Massive” sperm donations lead to the unplanned problem of anonymity. On the one hand some fertility clinics openly offer donors anonymity agreements. I will explain. Donors have the possibility of sharing their contact information with the children born from their donations. They can also refuse such an agreement.

However, “Massive” sperm donations favor the illegality and anonymity of donors. In the end it may harm children born from such sperm donations. For example, it could block their right to know about their ancestry or genetic line.

4. Human Reproductive Rights

Reproductive Rights

Sexual and reproductive rights establish that everyone has the right to access sexual and reproductive health services. Let me walk you through it. Reproductive services include appropriate treatment of infertility. And infertility treatment is one of the reasons that move individuals to obtain sperm donations.

Thus, what is the catch? Lack of regulation on “massive” sperm donations could infringe the right to reproductive health services. Here is what I mean. Lack of regulation does not protect the health and ethical rights related to “massive” sperm donations, as shown in the examples above.

Integral View of Reproductive Rights

There is more here. In a more global view regarding reproductive rights, the World Health Organization (WHO) highlights the need to observe them. Now, this is important. WHO recognizes that infertile individuals or couples, same-sex partners, singles, middle-aged, as well as people with certain medical conditions may need access to fertility care services.

WHO claims that access to high-quality fertility care is the base to success.

Notably, WHO also advocates a preventive approach. It includes developing research in the infertility field and providing early diagnosis of sexually transmitted infections. It also means reducing behavioral risks related to infertility and educating the public about fertility topics.

5. Fertility Care Inaccessibility

This is another important issue. In the Vanessa Ewijk case, the access to a fertility clinic was not affordable and therefore she opted for the online market of sperm donation. Vanessa was single when she got the sperm donation. However, there are many couples also facing infertility issues and only 10-15% of them can afford fertility clinic services.

What are the hazards of using cheaper unregulated services? Sperm banks often have high-quality control, so they are able to screen donor’s samples to check for an established list of diseases. People who opt for online unregulated markets do not have such quality control.

Lastly, new technology has brought hope to our lives, such as fertility services that make true the dream of thousands of people. However, developing regulations regarding the allowed number of sperm donations, as well as the access to high-quality reproductive services, is fundamental. In the end, regulation may help individuals protect their human rights and to take advantage of scientific advances without detriment.