In 2008, Wu Junping and her husband Zhang Yongli married and started trying to have a baby. However, after six years of trying, the Chinese couple thought they would never be able to have children. Then when Wu was 31, doctors told them they were pregnant with quintuplets. The likelihood of a woman having quintuplets without fertility treatments is one in 65 million and is especially rare for couples that have struggled with infertility.
Zhang explained how they felt when they found out the news.
He said, “My biggest worry was my wife had been ill for a while before she got pregnant, and had not fully recovered when she suddenly learned that she was pregnant with five babies. We inquired about the possibility of having the number reduced, but were told that it wasn’t possible to abort some babies without putting all risk, and so we decided it was all or nothing and to take the risk. It was my wife’s choice, and I supported her.”
Earlier this month, Wu delivered all five babies; but unfortunately, the last baby, a girl, didn’t survive birth. Currently, the other four are in an intensive care unit with the youngest weighing 1lb and 1.6 ounces.
Zhang said, “We have been told that the others have a good chance of surviving now and are doing well in intensive care, and at some stage we will be able to take them back to our home.” The couple is from the village of Zijin in Heze, a city located in eastern China’s Shandong province. Although they are excited about their new babies, they are extremely worried about having enough financial resources to care for their children.
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“Selective reduction,” the ‘procedure’ Zhang referred to, is the practice of aborting one or more babies in a multiple pregnancy, either because of potential health risks or parental preference. In the United States, selective reduction is commonly used for babies created through in vitro fertilization or other fertility treatments. Thankfully, in this couple’s case, the doctor saved a few lives by explaining that aborting one (or more) baby can endanger the lives of the others.
As LifeNews previously reported, the general technique used for “selective reduction” is plunging a needle filled with potassium chloride into the heart of the targeted baby. Soon after the chemical enters the baby’s heart, the baby ceases to move and her heart stops. This type of abortion is performed 9 to 13 weeks into pregnancy to make sure that the dead babies’ bodies dissolve and in some cases, the baby moves around before dying.
Dr. Mark Evans, an abortionist infamous for selective reduction abortions, admits that the procedure reduces the chances of survival for the remaining babies anywhere from 7 to 22%. Additionally, he said the larger the original pregnancy, the more likely a miscarriage, even after “reduction.”
