The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Friday May 16, 2008 - 9 Woman serves as `incubator' of sibling's baby Continued from page1 The germination of Jenna's extraordinary offer stemmed from Karma's inability to bear a child. In 2003, Karma was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma of the cervix, a rare form of cancer. Karma, who has never had a child, and Adam were not married at the time of her diagnosis, having only been together for a few months. The couple decided to harvest her eggs and have them fertilized with Adam's sperm and then frozen -- `kidsicles' as Jenna jokingly refers to the process. "Deep down, I always thought I'd carry a baby for her. I said, `If it comes down to it, of course I'd carry a baby for you.' She was thankful, but never really thought it would come down to that. " Dr. Jenna Davis Damage to Karma's uterus from radiation treatment resulted in her being unable to conceive or carry her own baby due to decreased blood flow. The 15 low-dose radiation treatments she received for the cancer weren't initially expected to cause infertility but that's what happened, said Karma. "I did a few acupuncture treatments on her to (try to) stimulate her (uterine) blood flow," Jenna said of initial attempts to help Karma. The Browns' predicament prompted more discussion about Jenna's surrogacy proposal. "I made the offer about five years ago," Davis said of the suggestion she harbour her sister's fertilized eggs. "We're very close. Deep down, I always thought I'd carry a baby for her. I said, `If it comes down to it, of course I'd carry a baby for you.' She was thankful, but never really thought it would come to that." Jenna said talk of helping her sister out in a profound way eventually turned more serious. "My husband and I had a lot of discussions in the fall of 2006. D'Arcy is incredibly supportive. His only concern was that everything was going to be okay for me." And how did they approach the rather unusual and potentially-complex situation with their two young kids? "We said that Auntie K's (Karma) tummy is broken so we're going to carry her baby for her," said Jenna. "They've never referred to the baby as a brother or sister." Now married for three years, the Browns, who live in Toronto, acknowledge they are receiving a special gift from Karma's sister and brother-in-law. "I really want to say how thankful Adam and I are that we have the opportunity to have a child this way, and how grateful we are to Jenna and D'Arcy for helping us make that happen. This really has been a serious group effort," said Karma. Karma, who has been keeping an Internet blog to update those interested in their situation, said she always had more reservations about the surrogacy than Jenna. "I was a little hesitant because my sister and I have always had such a strong, close relationship and I didn't want it to have a negative effect on the two of us." Jenna's pregnancy is actually the second on behalf of her sister. In June 2007 she had fertilized eggs from her sister put inside her, but an ectopic pregnancy developed; it is a dangerous situation for a woman where a fertilized egg has implanted outside the uterus, usually in the fallopian tubes, where there is little room for the embryo to grow. Karma was ready to end talk of surrogacy after that experience, but Jenna said she was ready to try again. "I didn't have to have surgery. I was the least concerned because it wasn't a devastating blow to my fertility. We were already sure we didn't want a third child. I had had two healthy pregnancies and my husband and I were okay with it, but my sister said, `We're done', out of concern for my health." Jenna convinced her sister to let them try again. Ironically, last Thanksgiving Jenna underwent a second transfer of frozen fertilized eggs from the Browns in a procedure performed by Dr. Tom Hannam, of The Hannam Fertility Centre in downtown Toronto. "They put two in and there was the chance of twins, about a 30 per cent chance," Jenna said she was told. She knows she is carrying only one child and that it is a girl, which she expects to deliver naturally in late June. She said her sister is keeping their choice of name a secret. Jenna said her pregnancy has been problem free and that she continues to work. As the due date of June 20 draws nearer, everyone is getting anxious, she said. "There's lots of (baby) movement. My sister and Adam are getting really excited. They give me recordings of music and of their voices so the baby can hear their voices a little more. We talk on the phone every day and about every other week we see each other. "Karma plans to breast feed, so she is undergoing a hormonal protocol to stimulate breast milk and I plan on pumping mine in case she can't produce enough," said Jenna. As for the ethics of carrying a baby for another person, Jenna said she has no moral dilemma. "Maybe it would be different if it was my egg being used from an ethical or moral standpoint, but I'm really just an incubator." Jenna said she and her husband were sure they didn't want any more children themselves. "I love my career. It would be hard to keep my balance of family and career going with another baby," she reasoned. With Alliance Healthcare Professionals, Jenna specializes in preand post-natal care, pediatrics, headaches/migraines, women's issues and fertility. She said she treats a number of fertility patients in different situations. Jenna said her parents, neighbours and clinic clients are okay with what she is doing for her sister. "Everyone's supportive and excited. (My parents) are proud they have two (daughters) willing to do this for each other. It's absolutely a huge gift and some sacrifices made on all our parts. "It's a very natural instinct for me (but) I do recognize a lot of people wouldn't do it." of-Town Servi & O u tce ort p Air OAKVILLE UNITED TAXI EXPERIENCED DRIVERS YOU CAN DEPEND ON 905.338.0044 THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT If you are interested in joining our team, please call 905-338-1762