A FLORIDA family is suing an IVF clinic after giving birth to a baby who does not share either of their genetics.
Real estate agent Tiffany Score and her partner Steven Mills filed the lawsuit against IVF Life Inc, which operates as Fertility Centre of Orlando.
The lawsuit states: “While both parents are racially Caucasian, Baby Doe displayed the physical appearance of a racially non-Caucasian child.”
And after genetic testing it was confirmed the child was not theirs, according to a family spokesperson.
Now the family face the terrifying prospect their baby could be taken away by her true parents at any moment.
Speaking to News 6 on Thursday the couple said: “We love our little girl, and if possible, we would hope to be able to continue to raise her ourselves with confidence that she won’t be taken away from us.”
But, they said they had a “moral obligation” to find and notify the babies’ biological parents so they are “given the option to raise her on their own”.
The pair hired IVF Life to help them have a child about five years ago by using in vitro fertilization (IVF) and became pregnant in April.
The process involves a woman’s eggs and a man’s sperm being fertilized outside of her body.
These embryos are then frozen until the parents decide to have them implanted in the woman.
But after Score gave birth, it became clear that IVF Life had made a shocking error.
The couple filed the lawsuit on January 22 after allegedly trying to contact the clinic multiple times with no response.
One of the couple’s lawyers, Jack Scarola, told the Orlando Sentinel: “They have fallen in love with this child.
“They would be thrilled in the knowledge that they could raise this child.
“But their concern is that this is someone else’s child, and someone could show up at any time and claim the baby and take that baby away from them.”
In another traumatic twist the pair are afraid one of their three fertilized eggs they froze at the clinic may have been mistakenly given to someone else.
Despite a “lack of help or cooperation” from the clinic, the parents said they “hope to find our own genetic child soon”.
How does IVF work ?
In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) is a common fertility treatment used to help families get pregnant
- A full cycle of IVF takes around 3 to 6 weeks to complete.
- An injection or nasal spray stops your ovaries producing eggs naturally.
- Once your ovaries are no longer producing eggs, you’ll inject yourself every day for 2 weeks with medicine that increases your egg supply.
- A doctor at the clinic collects your eggs.
- Eggs are fertilised with sperm in a lab and the embryo is placed in a woman’s womb.
- A pregnancy test is taken 16 days after the embryo transfer.
- If healthy embryos are left over, they can be frozen for future IVF attempts.
They have demanded to see records from the clinic to find out what happened.
And they want IVF Life to pay for genetic testing of every child born with support of the company in the last year.
The couple said: “Based upon leads discovered to date, and despite the lack of help or cooperation from the clinic, there is hope that we will be able to introduce our daughter to her genetic parents and to find our own genetic child soon.”
A family spokesperson said an investigation is ongoing into the baffling situation.
The lawsuit names IVF Life LLC and Dr. Milton McNichol, who runs the clinic, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
The Fertility Centre of Orlando reportedly stated it is cooperating with an investigation “to support one of our parents in determining the source of an error that resulted in the birth of a child who is not genetically related to them”.
The notice was removed from the website after a hearing for the case on Wednesday.
Score and Mills asked for privacy in pursuing their goals.
They said: “If and when those goals are achieved, or if continued privacy becomes an obstacle to correcting the terrible errors that place us in our current position, we will advise the media and again reach out for continued support.”
The Sun has approached IVF Life for comment.
