Human egg market booms
(sz) Prospective parents pay thousands for right genes
Caitlin Karolczak sees it as a classic case of supply and demand. After all, one of her eggs goes to waste every month, so she might as well share it with a woman who can use it. She thinks the $8,000 she can get is a reasonable price for helping someone create a life. “If you give something away, they won’t cherish it,” she said.
Much has changed since the first test tube baby was conceived in a laboratory petri dish in 1978. Today, Karolczak, a 24-year-old Minneapolis artist and antique dealer, is a bit player in a $3 billion business, which is thriving on the Internet and being transformed by advances in medical technology and new competition among clinics promising miracles to couples often desperate to have a child.
But as it flourishes, some are warning that the freewheeling marketplace is turning the creation of human life into a commercial enterprise that cries out for consumer protection. And nowhere is this more evident than in the exploding market for human eggs, where there are few laws protecting the rights and health of donors and parents.
Though women like Karolczak are called egg donors, most are well paid. Couples in parts of the country offer fees as high as $20,000 or more for the eggs of educated, attractive young women. more…
From: »Monterey County Herald«