Read a 53-year old woman's story below.
It was boundless joy at St Ives Hospital Lagos when a 53-year-old
woman was recently delivered of two bouncing baby boys. The woman was
conceived through Invitro Fertilisation (IVF), having waited for over
20 years in humiliation and agony...
IVF is a process by which an egg is fertilised by sperm outside the
body. The process involves monitoring a woman's ovulatory process,
removing ovum or ova (egg or eggs) from the woman's ovaries and
letting sperm fertilise them in a fluid medium in a laboratory.
The fertilised egg (zygote) is then transferred to the patient's
uterus (womb) after three to five days of being in the incubator, with
the intention of establishing a successful pregnancy.
In a chat with Vanguard in Lagos, the elated woman, who pleaded
anonymity, probably for cultural reasons, described it as "20 years of
tensed waiting for her marriage to produce fruits."
The jubilant nursing mother and her husband said they were not after
publicity but decided to speak to the press in order to encourage
couples who are presently facing similar challenges in their marriage
not to give up, adding that it is never too late for anyone.
She admitted that she has almost given up when it was obvious that
menopause had set in but continued to exercise her religious faith,
until according to her, God directed her to St Ives Centre, even when
she was not having the required money to carry out the IVF circle.
" If one is in a marriage for two – three years, and has no child to
show for it, as an African, there will be pressure, so mine was not
exceptional. Though my people respected my person, there were
pressures both from within and outside. But l held on to God because
I'm a strong Christian and l know He never fails. I serve a living God
who is faithful despite our unfaithfulness.
"I heard about St Ives just by chance. That was in September last
year. Coincidentally, l did my Masters programme at Obafemi Awolowo
University (OAU), very close to the hospital, and l never knew this
place existed. It was divine and all things work together for those
that love God.
"My advice to every woman wanting fruit of the womb is that they
should hold on to God and l pray for them that their joy should come
into manifestation soon. There is nothing impossible for God, it could
be difficult with man but certainly not with God. If He can do mine at
53, it shows no case is concluded.
"For me, l see it as a reward for my past shame. God has given me
double glory, my two boys. It is more than a miracle. And for the
management of St Ives, l keep praying for them because they are not
after one's money, if they were, l couldn't have registered.
"People used to call me Big Mummy, but God has given me a new and
better name, 'mummy twins'. l am now a fulfilled woman," she narrated.
Her husband, who claimed to be four months older than his wife, said
he knew his wife at age 12 when they were in secondary school but time
and space set them apart for separate marriages where the man was
fortunate to have children unlike the woman.
Fate however reunited them to become a happy family today having known
each other for over 40 years.
He said the joy that the twins brought to the family had overridden
their past apprehension; trauma and agony all through the years of his
wife's infertility, adding that she might have wept secretly on
countless occasions.
"Today, all we are saying is thank you God. My wife had fasted and
prayed and l believed that is why you see her looking like under
sixteen now. I must confess that everybody is happy," he said.
Reacting on the feat, Chief Medical Director of St Ives Hospital,
Babatunde Okewale said the hospital's Fertility Unit adopts a
success-oriented approach towards infertility, focusing on solution
for infertile couples at an affordable cost rather than doing endless
investigation and tests.
The cost of IVF in most Nigerian hospitals, he said, was relatively
between N650,000 and 1 million per circle and that was largely
dependent on an individual patient. He noted that it was never a cheap
process globally as it costs about 10, 000 dollars and above 5, 000
pounds in the United States of America and United Kingdom
respectively.
Okewale pointed out that there were other procedures in medicine that
were more expensive than IVF, giving kidney transplant and hip
replacement that cost over N1 million as examples. He maintained that
the procedure was affordable by most Nigerians.
He revealed that through IVF, about 550 babies have been delivered at
his hospital which was established five years ago. He said St Ives
does a half price promo once a year, in collaboration with some
Non-Governmental Organisations.
Okewale further stated that the hospital is highly specialised in
treating repeated IVF failure, provides treatment for men diagnosed
with sperm problems and in elderly patients with a success of about 30
percent, including the conception and delivery by a 57-year-old woman.
As infertility continues on the rise worldwide, he enumerated some of
the causes as urbanization, pollution, stress, chemical exposure,
career orientation, late settlement in life, non-properly treated
infections, obesity and abuse of antibiotics.
Urging Nigerian women to start bearing children earlier, he also said
that the success of IVF was determined by age and the earlier the
better.
Source: Vanguard
