Around the world there are currently many thousands of embryos existing in a frozen state. While a number of these are stored because couples are still involved in fertility treatment, many will never be required for implanting and have come to be labelled as "spare" or "surplus". There is a world-wide debate about what should happen to those embryos whose parents no longer wish to implant them.
Some people argue that the stored embryos should be made available for research that could lead to treatments for people suffering from serious diseases. Catholic teaching on the moral status of the embryo is clear "from the time the ovum is fertilised, a life is begun which is the life of a new human being with his or her own growth" (Evangelium Vitae, 60-61). This implies that from the first moment of its existence the result of human procreation must be guaranteed the unconditional respect that is due to every human person. Because such research destroys the embryo it is contrary to the Catholic position of unconditional respect for human life.
At the same time keeping embryos indefinitely in a suspended frozen state also constitutes an ongoing injustice and affront to their dignity. In the face of such injustice, allowing the embryos to thaw and die has come to be seen by many Catholics, and others, as the most humane way of dealing with a problem that should never have arisen.
The option of embryo donation gives genetic parents another avenue for exercising their parental responsibility; an option that truly respects the dignity of the embryo. The life that is already started is given the opportunity to flourish.
To date there has been no explicit pronouncement from the Holy See on embryo adoption. Some Catholic theologians hold that it is immoral because it constitutes a form of surrogacy which is contrary to Catholic teaching. Other Catholic theologians describe it as an act of "rescue" that intends to save a child. They point out that it is rectifying an injustice that has already happened.
Staff at The Nathaniel Centre consider that the case in favour of embryo adoption is the one more consistent with the priority that Church teaching accords to protecting the sanctity of life.
Post birth, adoption raises a number of psychological, social, moral, emotional and ethical considerations associated with the welfare of the child. Parents seeking to adopt embryos will need to be screened. There will need to be good processes in place for counselling and support for all parties involved. The children born by way of embryo adoption will need to be given access to information about their background since we know from our experience of child adoption that this is important in their search for meaning and identity.
There are a number of programmes overseas that offer embryo adoption services. The Snowflakes program in America is perhaps the best known. The recipients of the embryos may be other infertile women/couples, or women/couples who already have children of their own and who are adopting embryos out of a desire to "rescue" a human life already begun.
In New Zealand the National Ethics Committee on Assisted Human Reproduction (NECAHR) guidelines state that "embryo donation for reproductive purposes should be provided only when there are medical conditions precluding normal reproduction or unexplained infertility." This would seem to specifically exclude applicants who might wish to adopt for altruistic reasons. From the perspective of respect for the sanctity of life, this appears as an arbitrary criterion. Provided such couples meet the other established criteria, there is no moral reason as to why altruism should be excluded as a valid reason for being able to adopt.
The adoption of embryos left over from fertility treatments must be distinguished from other types of reproduction arrangements. There is some evidence from overseas that where there are too few stored embryos available, embryos are being created specifically for adoption, using donated eggs and sperm. In some cases couples are being offered the opportunity to select eggs and sperm from donors with genetic characteristics they want in their child, which is in effect a form of "designer baby" approach.
In all likelihood there exists a significant difference between the numbers of embryos really available for adoption compared to the numbers theoretically available. Many couples are not comfortable with offering for adoption the embryos they do not intend to implant. Therefore, while embryo adoption offers a practical means for resolving a difficult situation, in reality it is likely to provide a viable future for only a small proportion of the embryos stored.
See The Moral Case for Embryo Adoption in Issue 16, The Nathaniel Report (August 2005)
The Nathaniel Centre: Submission to the National Ethics Committee on Assisted Human Reproduction (NECAHR) on Embryo Donation for Reproductive Purposes.
NECAHR: Embryo Donation Guidelines - August 2005