We all know that many couples find it much more difficult to conceive a baby than British prime minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie, who unexpectedly announced they were, in their mid-40s, expecting a fourth child. All those longing for children will be interested in the news that in not too many years to come, virtually no one need remain infertile, thanks to extraordinary scientific breakthroughs as reported in Frontline: Making Babies (World, 10pm).
Nature deemed Kevin Gates, born with a rare genetic disorder causing his body organs to be misplaced, should not reproduce. But a new technique of extracting the few live sperm Gates produces has allowed him and his wife Mina, along with about 20,000 other couples, to conceive.
A lesbian couple choose the sire of their offspring through the Internet, selecting a tall medical student with musical talent. An egg is extracted from one woman, fertilised and placed in the womb of her lover, to ensure the making of the baby is a joint effort.
Other women talk of selling their eggs, at a going rate of US$5,000 (HK$38,850). 'I contribute building materials which I was not going to use,' is the way one woman justifies this kind of transaction.
The manufacturing of babies may represent the ultimate in human choice and a free market economy. 'Couples should have the right to choose their method of reproduction,' argues one fertility specialist who placed a fertilised embryo in a surrogate womb so that the mother could get on with her own career without the inconvenience of pregnancy.
The fertility business is booming across the United States, with 1.2 million people a year seeking treatment, at huge emotional and financial expense, paying US$100,000 for long-term treatment, with no guarantee of success.