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The lawsuit claims that a “mistake” during in vitro fertilization could cause the boy to develop stomach cancer.
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The infant’s parents sought in vitro fertilization to avoid inheriting the stomach cancer gene, according to the complaint.
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The child’s father told Insider that his heart aches for the boy “every day.”
Babies born through in vitro fertilization are at risk of developing deadly cancer after fertility clinics mistakenly implant embryos with genetic mutations, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday for the babies’ parents.
According to their complaint obtained by an insider, Huntington Reproductive Center, It was founded in 1988 and its internist, Dr. Bradford Kolb, is responsible for inflicting “unfathomable pain and suffering” on babies who need feeding tubes.
The filing says that in the best-case scenario, a stomach-removal surgery will be needed when the baby reaches puberty. stomach cancercan be fatal.
The boy’s parents, Jason and Melissa Diaz, in vitro fertilization Screening to avoid inheriting Jason’s stomach cancer gene CDH1 geneTheir joy was “short-lived” after the birth of their child in September 2021, according to court documents.
This gene puts you at a very high risk of developing a rare but deadly cancer. The recommended treatments for people at high risk of developing stomach cancer are: gastrectomy.
Melissa Diaz, 31, said at a press conference, “After everything we did and everything HRC and Dr. Kolb promised, he had the exact same mutation we thought we had escaped. I can’t believe I had it,” said Wednesday.
“My heart was crushed,” she told the insider. “I couldn’t believe it was real.”
Jason Diaz said at a press conference that he was diagnosed five years ago hereditary diffuse gastric cancer, is a rare cancer, and multiple family members have died from the disease. His chemotherapy was unsuccessful and he underwent a gastrectomy.
“My entire digestive system has been rewired,” said the 37-year-old.
“When my wife and I decided to have children, we knew we had to do everything in our power to protect our future children from this genetic mutation,” said Diaz, who works as a retail store manager.
“Now I am forced to watch my son, my own flesh and blood, go through this,” he said. increase.”
Jason Diaz told a press conference that he consulted with Kolb during chemotherapy in 2018 and that the HRC “promised” that he and his wife’s embryos would be screened and only those without the mutated gene would be implanted. “By trusting Dr. Kolb and HRC, it turned out to be the biggest mistake of our lives,” Diaz said.
The lawsuit alleges that HRC was fully aware of the couple’s wishes and not only implanted the mutated embryos, but also attempted to cover up the error by falsifying medical records after discovering the error. .
In a statement to the insider, HRC said it sympathizes with the family’s situation. “The initial biopsy was performed by HRC,” he said, but continued, “However, the patient associated with this case sought genetic testing and counseling outside of HRC Fertility.”
Partner Adam Wolfe Pfeiffer Wolf, The law firm representing the Diazés said in an insider statement that the genetic testing company “knew HRC was wrong and simply misunderstood what the genetic report showed.” .
“This is a tragic, tragic mistake by HRC Fertility and Dr. Kolb that is inexcusable,” Wolf said at a press conference.
The couple, who married in 2018, did something “responsible” by choosing IVF to screen their future children for potential genetic mutations.
The two put their trust in Kolb and his team, based in Pasadena, California, after reading HRC’s website, the lawsuit says.
“Dr. Kolb boasted of what he is known for helping develop and implement state-of-the-art technology in genetic screening of embryos,” the complaint reads.
Lawsuit alleges clinic tried to cover up error
In the lawsuit, Diazes said she underwent IVF in 2020 and five embryos proved viable. According to the documents, one of his embryos with the mutation was implanted by Dr. Kolb into Melissa Diaz in January 2021.
The filing says the parents’ family “shared their joy” when their son was born. The relatives “threw a huge party to celebrate the elimination of her CDH1 mutation from the Diaz family,” it said.
During a press conference, Melissa said she discovered what happened when she contacted the clinic in the summer of 2022 to inquire about a subsequent embryo transfer. He added that he was hoping for a second baby before having his uterus removed.
Diazes alleges that an HRC employee sent the couple handwritten documents showing which embryos carried the oncogene. Melissa learned that tests on her son’s embryos had detected the mutation.
Claims Associate Melissa says she thought it was a mistake at first. “I wish it was some kind of record-keeping mistake,” she said at her press conference. “After all, they misunderstood the results of our embryo test.
She added:
HRC tried to cover its tracks by withdrawing “information about which embryos were transferred,” Wolff said. According to their lawsuit, the center provided a “forged version” of the report and deleted the “guilty” note.
In a statement to the insider, the HRC “strongly denied the accusations of falsification or mismanagement of records. An initial biopsy of the embryo in question was performed by the HRC, but there is no evidence related to genetic testing and counseling. The issue was made through a third party provider.”
According to the application, the baby was 10 months old and tested positive for the CDH1 gene mutation.
interventional gastroenterologist Dr. Austin Chang, An untreated baby with dialysis told an insider that people with the gene mutation have a higher risk of rare cancers.
quote study According to a paper published in JAMA in 2015, “Based on this paper, which looked at 183 patients with this mutation, 70% of men and 56% of women developed stomach cancer by age 80. ”
Jason worries his son will miss ‘simple things’ like eating a cheeseburger
Jason Diaz told Insider that his own experience with stomach cancer is predictive of his son’s health.
“Why does he have to change his life at such a young age and not experience what he should be able to experience as a young adult, as an adult?” he said.
He added that his son’s life would be difficult if he developed cancer, possibly with a gastrectomy, feeding tubes, and possibly chemotherapy.
“The simple things we take for granted in life, like having a cheeseburger and a soda at the same time, or taking him to the ballpark and watching him buy ice cream, don’t let him get older. “It’s going to become impossible as time goes on,” Diaz said.
Lawyers are seeking an undisclosed amount from HRC for the boy’s ongoing medical bills and “distress” for his family.
Jason Diaz said at a press conference, “We know we will get through this with strength and grace. But there needs to be justice.”
Melissa told an insider that her baby is a “happy, talkative boy” who has just learned to “climb on the couch by himself.”
“He only knows happiness,” Jason added. “That’s what we’ve been preaching to him every day. He’s an amazing, amazing boy.”
Read the original article at insider