Two two-mom couples in Texas have had babies after using a new fertility technique that allows both members of the couple to carry the child for part of its development.
Ashleigh and Bliss Coulter used “reciprocal effortless in vitro fertilization,” a technique developed by INVO Bioscience of Massachusetts. The process started like traditional IVF, by harvesting Bliss’ eggs. Instead of fertilizing and incubating in a dish in the lab, however, the egg and donor sperm were placed into a special INVOcell device that was inserted into Bliss’ vagina, where they fertilized and incubated more naturally. After five days, the device was taken out and the embryos frozen until they were ready to be placed in Ashleigh’s womb until birth.
The Coulters’ baby was born last June, followed in September by the baby of another Texas two-mom couple using the same technique. Congratulations to all of them!
My spouse and I created our son through regular old reciprocal IVF, which seemed pretty cutting edge at the time. The cost of reciprocal effortless IVF, however, is approximately $8000 with medication, about half of traditional reciprocal IVF, reports ABC News.
One thing to note, though: ABC News quotes Ashleigh as saying that in most cases, one member of a same-sex [presumably female] couple simply has the child, with the aid of a sperm donor, and the other has to adopt the child. True—but the article left out something critical. Even if you do reciprocal IVF, and even if both your names are on the birth certificate, LGBTQ legal experts still advise doing a second-parent adoption or getting a court order of parentage. I see no reason this wouldn’t also hold true for reciprocal effortless IVF, if only because it’s so new it’s never faced legal scrutiny of this type.
For those who want more of the medical details, INVO Bioscience said in a press statement:
With the INVO Procedure, the temperature, carbon dioxide (CO2) and oxygen (O2), and physiological pH stays stable throughout the incubation period. There is no interference in the vaginal incubation environment which occurs in incubators due to the opening and closing of the incubator doors as well as the cycling of the temperature (thermostat). The INVOcell Culture Device uses the body as a natural incubator making it possible for the INVOcell device to maintain proper pH of the culture medium using the human body temperature, and CO2 and O2 concentration throughout the incubation period. The use of the INVOcell Culture Device in the vaginal cavity is a more stable environment than an incubator for temperature, and CO2 and O2 stability during fertilization and early embryo development.
Of course, other scientists are working on ways for same-sex parents to both contribute genetic material to their children, but that’s still a ways off. And as I’ve said before, ultimately, the way we form our families is less important than the way we raise our children. Still, it’s great to see technology evolving to provide family-creation alternatives that are not only cheaper but could make both moms feel even more connected to the process. It might not be for everyone, but it’s an intriguing new option.
Slight correction: The capsule is placed in the vagina, not the womb.
Thank you—corrected!