British Parents Opt Against Abortion Despite Doctor’s Health Prediction 
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
March 6, 2006
Grangetown, England (LifeNews.com) — Though a doctor initially predicted their unborn baby may not survive the pregnancy or live long after birth, a British couple is thankful they followed their instincts and refused to have an abortion. They say a second opinion from a specialist made a huge difference.
Stacy Jackson and Lee Scott say they were warned by a doctor at Sunderland Royal Hospital that their baby would have such sever brain damage that it would be best to have an abortion.
"We were told the baby would be lucky to get through the pregnancy or that even if he did he may only last a day, a week or a month, but that he would not survive," Jackson, a 20 year-old first time mother told the Sunderland Today magazine.
"I was just so upset, it was such a shock. I think it must have been motherly instinct. I knew my baby and I knew it wasn’t true," she explained.
The news came from Jackson’s obstetrician who told them of the problems after Jackson had we 20 week ultrasound scan.
Jackson says the couple had been trying for two years to get pregnant and Lee said the couple were searching for answers following the initial diagnosis.
"We were devastated," he told Sunderland Today. "We were asking all the possibilities. Was there anything at all that could be done?"
Jackson said the couple sought a second opinion from Dr. Stephen Sturgis, a fetal surgeon at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary. Sturgis confirmed their baby had "fluid on the brain" and that their unborn son Jaxon had fetal ventriculomegaly, where parts of the brain become enlarged.
"Dr. Sturgis said there was a 60 per cent chance of him being all right and we decided to give our baby that chance," Lee told the newsmagazine.
Jaxon was born on December 20 and an MRI scan a few days later showed no brain damage, though some fluid had to be drained from the baby’s brain and he will have to undergo surgery because of problems with his digestive system.
Otherwise, baby Jaxon is fine and the couple are happy.
"He’s our miracle baby and I’m so glad I followed my mother’s instinct." Jackson told Sunderland Today.
"We want other couples to know about the importance of seeking a second opinion," Lee added. "What if I wait until Jaxon is better and take him to the hospital to say this is the child that could have been terminated? I’m not happy about the way we were treated. I think we should have been offered all the options."
Paul Danon, a representative of the British pro-life group Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, told the magazine, "Abortion is offered all too readily as an apparent solution to an apparent problem and is too quickly jumped to as though it was some sort of medical procedure, as if it would make things better."
