It has been interesting to see IVF dominate the news with the Alabama ruling on "extrauterine children." Is "interesting" the right word? [Nope]
I wish that the media would use accurate terminology. The number of times I have heard "implant" -- as in "when the doctor implants the embryo in the uterus" -- blows my mind. The word they are looking for is TRANSFER. If doctors could guarantee implantation, that would be a game changer. But alas, all they can do is deposit that embryo into a prepped uterus and everyone crosses their fingers. I would have saved myself a lot of pain and money if it was PRESTO-- implantation. It makes IVF sound like a sure thing. (It's not.) Also, Bryce just said that if the phrasing is that the embryo is "implanted" in the uterus, then the failure falls on the woman when it doesn't continue. Which I never thought of before, and adds to the insidiousness of the self-blame I felt (and I'm sure others did too) when cycles failed.
A NYT article included this bonkers quote (emphasis mine):
"The statute does not address quotidian medical malpractice claims. If an infertility patient has a dangerous ectopic pregnancy because a doctor mistakenly implanted an embryo in her fallopian tube, she can still sue for negligence, Mr. McMichael said. But among her damages, he said, she can’t claim the destroyed embryo."
What???? Having experienced an ectopic after IVF, I can say with certainly that that's all kinds of inaccurate. Embryos aren't implanted by the doctor. Embryos travel until they find their spot to implant. Sometimes they go the wrong way. And when they do, there is no recovering, no resuscitating, no saving that embryo because it can't grow normally in a tube. It's doomed from the start. What it can do is kill the woman it's inside. Fact check me, please... I really don't think you can mistakenly "implant " an embryo in a Fallopian tube.
I also heard a journalist on Glennon Doyle's We Can Do Hard Things podcast say that selective reduction is when you choose the healthiest embryo for transfer (although I think she said implant, argh) out of a group. Nope, nope, nope. I feel like actual selective reduction happens less now with Single Embryo Transfer, because it's when there are too many fetuses due to overzealous treatment and for the mother's and potential baby's health, one or more is terminated so one or two can survive to full term. VERY DIFFERENT process and emotional load from choosing which embryo will have the best shot at transfer.
I don't know why there is such an amazing dearth of fact checking or copy editing in the media attention on IVF, but it drives me crazy. (Not as crazy as the bonkers ruling, which has devastated so many who were mid-cycle when it dropped. Devastating.) I just feel that after this apocalyptic reproductive rights ravaging, they could at least get the words right.
At the very least, get the words right. Words matter. One would think a "news" outlet would be well for that part, at least. :-(
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jess! I remember a lot of bloggers years ago gritting their teeth over "implant" (vs "transfer"). Sad to think nothing has changed over the years, especially when the topic is getting so much attention right now.
ReplyDeleteLike Middle Girls says, WORDS MATTER. And as you point out, certain words come with blame and shame -- unnecessary blame and shame! Writers about the topic should be more careful. But as happens often, people can't correct a blind spot they aren't aware of.
ReplyDeleteI'm wondering what kind of court case or media fascination it will take for such a wrong-wordism to come to light and actually be acknowledged and debated.
I was having heaps of trouble commenting on blogger sites (including my own) there for a while, so I read this as you posted it, and desperately wanted to respond immediately, because I 100% agree! It infuriates me too. Transfer, not implant. Selective reduction is NOT choosing the best embryo - arrrgh! And especially the whole thing around ectopics - as you know I volunteered for one of the world's only ectopic pregnancy organisations for years! You're 100% correct - drs cannot mistakenly "implant" an embryo in the fallopian tube. Rates of ectopic pregnancy are much higher for IVF patients - usually because of underlying issues, not because of actions of a dr. Then you get the crazy people who claim that drs can move ectopic pregnancies from the tubes (or wherever the embryo has implanted) into the uterus, which is not possible. The worst thing is that ectopics are the leading cause of maternal death in early pregnancy. So this misinformation is not just inaccurate, it' can be dangerous. Argh - the casual misinformation around women's health. I know I make plenty of mistakes myself, but there's a time and place. I'm very much a pedant when it comes to accuracy around correct terminology.
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