Oct 15, 2008 / 02:07 am
Pro-life advocates have warned that a new non-invasive pre-natal test for Down syndrome could increase ‘eugenic’ abortions. The new test, which checks a baby’s DNA, has been developed by researcher Dr. Stephen Quake and his team at Stanford University.
Studies in the United States and the United Kingdom have claimed that as many as 9 in 10 unborn children diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted.
Carol Boys, chief executive of the Down’s Syndrome Association in Great Britain, recently told the BBC that the less invasive blood test will make pre-natal testing safer and more common.
“There is no question that these non-invasive tests will be introduced in the next few years,” she said. “It’s therefore incredibly important that potential parents are given accurate information on Down’s syndrome before they make a choice about whether to terminate or not.”