On September 25, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space held a hearing on the scientific and medical advances in the field of in utero surgery.
In his opening statement, Subcommittee Chair Sam Brownback (R-KS) stated, “the ability to treat and cure diseases for the benefit of the young child who is yet to be born is an amazing advance that will help alleviate the suffering of many young children, and in fact, is already doing so…these are advances that all people, regardless of their political views, can embrace as a positive step.”
The subcommittee first heard testimony from Alex and Julie Armas, a couple who discovered 15 weeks into the pregnancy that their child would be born with spina bifida. After consulting with doctors and researching the disease on the Internet, they chose to undergo maternal-fetal surgery at the Vanderbilt Medical Center. Their son, Samuel, is now a healthy three-year-old, and Mrs. Armas said that the surgery “provided a ray of hope when we were in a very dark place.” Mr. Armas explained that the family wanted to encourage Congress to provide funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to do more research on this type of surgery. He also highlighted the fact that insurance companies do not cover most maternal-fetal surgeries.
Dr. James Thorpe, a Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialist at the University of Florida-Pensacola, discussed the many opportunities in in utero surgery that are currently being examined, including angioplasties and treatment for cleft pallets. He reiterated the need for more NIH research, lamenting that approximately 40% of the women who have undergone the maternal-fetal surgery for spina bifida have delivered premature babies. He also noted that the women who undergo this type of surgery risk damaging their uterus for future pregnancies.
