More than 1,200 mothers and 900 children impacted by Dutch fertility scandal
A popular Dutch fertility clinic used sperm from dozens of donors far more than the 25 permitted times for over a decade, affecting hundreds of children and mothers.
One of the Netherlands ' largest fertility clinics, Medisch Centrum Kinderwens (MCK), used sperm from at least 36 donors many more times than permitted between 2006 and 2017, Dutch news outlet Nos reported, affecting more than 900 mothers and 1,200 children.
Dutch youth minister Vincent Karremans said it was an 'appalling' case which would understandably lead to anger and questions from those affected.
'They are now confronted with the news that their children belong to a larger kinship network than they had expected or wanted. The children appear to have more half-brothers or -sisters than thought,' he said in response to questions from Nos.
'And the donors appear to have more offspring than they themselves thought. I can imagine that this can have a major impact on each of them.'
In April, Nos's current affairs programme Nieuwsuur shocked the Netherlands when it revealed that Dutch fertility clinic practices had resulted in at least 85 mass donors.
A mass donor is someone who has more than 25 offspring, which was the maximum limit permitted by the country's professional association of gynaecologists until 2018, when the limit was reduced to a maximum of 12 families per donor.
MCK confirmed it had 36 mass donors, and blamed previous management for ignoring the guidelines.
In a statement to Nos, MCK director Wouter van Inzen blamed the number of mass donors on a donor shortage and high demand from mothers, as well as the 'desire for multiple children from the same donor within one family'.
Current management took over in 2015 and ended the practice in 2017, but Mr van Inzen said the clinic decided not to approach the donors and parents involved in the issue 'in consultation with the professional group'.
The Donorkind Foundation, an advocacy group, said: 'Prospective parents are nothing more than paying customers, donors are a kind of raw material and donor children nothing more than products'.
Priamos, the sperm donors' association, said the clinic's actions were "irresponsible and unscrupulous".
Donors were asked from 2006 whether they wanted to donate for 25 families, rather than 25 children, and their contracts allowed a certain number of children to be conceived in other countries.
Priamos said while those contracts were in breach of the rules, all the donors the association spoke to thought donating to 25 families was permitted.
'We are not aware of any donor who was made aware that the rules were being violated. Donors do not need to know the rules either. They can assume that they will be treated fairly by the clinic,' the association told Nos.
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