University Daily Kansan / Tuesday, September 6; 1988
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Sperm bank serious business
Midwest Fertility Foundation often last hope for some couples
By Daniel Niemi
Kansan staff writer
The waiting room could be that of a dentist. The magazines are the same, heavy on Time and Newsweek. There is the same elevator music, heavy on the strings. But the waiting room is not for dental patients.
For many of the people who wait, it is the last stop in the process of peace, and the choice to go there probably was not easy.
The waiting room is for the Midwest Fertility Foundation and Laboratory Inc. in Kansas City, Mo.
Dave and Carrie, a couple from Kansas City who asked that their last name not be used, said that after two years of trying unsuccessfully to have a child, they sought help from the foundation.
“It’s frustrating. What comes so naturally for some people is so difficult for us,” Carrie said.
The opportunity for flippancy is wide open, but the need to take it seriously is even stronger, said Ewen Grimes, a spokesman with the firm.
"The issue of sperm donors is not a joke," Grimes said. There was an article in a local paper that made fun of the idea of buying sperm from a donor window and that you didn't earn interest on your deposit. Infertility is a very, very delicate subject for which the doctor would need to be careful.
Although Dave and Carrie did not need to use a sample from the facility's sperm bank; some couples do. The female donor must be
Grimes said that the sperm bank was only a small part of the museum, the foundation provided for couples with infant health needs.
Despite misconceptions that sperm banks operate like blood banks, Grimes said the foundation's sperm bank is not run by a religious organization.
Donors are required to provide a detailed family history dating back three generations and a detailed review of sexual history. Donors are screened for AIDS and other sexually transmissible diseases.
Sperm samples are frozen under a surface of liquid nitrogen and must be quarantined for six months to make sure the sample is disease-free. The donor may be released before the sample can be released to the medical community.
The quarantine restrictions have reduced the number of donors and increased the demand for semen samples, Grimes则。the decrease in available samples could eliminate artificial insemination as a treatment.
Grimes said some donors did not qualify because their samples could not withstand the freezing process or have a degraded appearance.
In addition to donors, Grimes said the sperm bank contained samples from men who were concerned about their potential fertility.
Donors' sperm is separated according to ethnic background, age, height, weight, hair color, eye color and medical history. Grimes said sperm could be frozen for up to 10 years.
"In actuality, we would screen out a donor immediately if we knew that the only motive for participation was to win."
problems to go through the required testing and who agreed to return periodically to tests and participate on the basis of their performance.
Grimes would not comment on the amount donors were paid.
Such men include those who will undergo radiation treatment or chemotherapy for testicular cancer, Hodgkin's disease or lymphoma. Those treatments can impair male fertility.
INVITATION
TO: ALL KU STUDENTS
WHAT: Join Student Senate boards committees and projects
WHEN: before Friday Sept. 9 WHERE: pick up forms at the SUA Office, the Student Senate Office (105 Burge Union) or your organized living group day!
For more information, call the Student Senate Office at 864-3710 GET INVOLVED!
Macs are back See them now at the KU Bookstore in the Burge
The KU MacDeal:
It's the biggest Macintosh sale ever, and it's only at the KU Bookstore in the Burge Union.
Now is the time to buy your Mac, while the prices are lower than ever before. Just stop by the KU Bookstore in the Burge Union to reserve your Macintosh "Smart Package," at these smart prices:
Smart Package #1
SMALL PACKAGE #1 $1599.00
Macintosh Plus w/ standard keyboard
Imagewriter II
MacWrite
10 floppy diskettes
500 sheets of computer paper
Mouse Pad
Smart Package #2 $2299.00
Macintosh SE (two floppy drives)
Standard keyboard
Imagewriter II
MacWrite
10 floppy diskettes
500 sheets of computer paper
Mouse pad
$2799.00
Smart Package #3
Macintosh SE/ 20 MB hard drive
Standard keyboard
Imagewriter II
MacWrite
10 floppy diskettes
500 sheets of computer paper
Mouse pad
Other Great Deals:
her Great Deals:
* Macintosh Plus          $1200.00
* Macintosh SE (two floppy drives) $1900.00
* Macintosh SE (20 MB hard drive) $2300.00
* Standard keyboard        $95.00
* Extended keyboard       $175.00
* Imagewriter II w/ cable   $475.00
* MacWrite                $60.00
Additional pricing available upon request. Prices do not include 4.5% sales tax. Student dividends already applied on computer purchases.
Computer Financing
You may be able to finance your computer with help from the Financial Aid Office. There's even a plan to let you buy now and pay after you graduate! All you have to do is stop by the financial aid office and get a student application along with a student computer financing information sheet.
Burge Union 864-5697
MacTalk
"NO PROBLEM"
You've faced this dilemma many times before.
Sure, you can turn to that dreaded typewriter, but why subject your hard work to a destiny of mistakes and white-out?
With an Apple Macintosh, you are in control of a complete desktop publishing system.
To make word processing a breeze, we've included MacWrite with every Smart Package.
On a Mac, mistakes can be easily corrected with a click of the mouse, so you turn in a perfect paper every time. It is always a cinch to move entire paragraphs, cut & paste or even change type styles. Perfectly illustrated graphs, charts and graphics are not only easy to create, but help your papers stand out above the rest.
That's working smart! So stop by the KU Bookstore in the Burge Union to see how you can turn your work into works of art.
Burge Union
MACINTOSH $ ^{\mathrm {T M}} $
Your Answer To Working Smart At KU
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