Mid-Day,
By Vidya Shivram
Dr Amy Jones's contribution to mankind is teaching
medical centres to implement a new infertility treatment
technique
She is all 25. A love for travelling combined with
a love for work appears to have brought Dr Amy Jones
to Mumbai.
An embryologist by profession, Jones is collaborating
with Malpani Fertility Services by assisting them in
the specialised technique of ICSI.
ICSI (pronounced 'eeksee') is the technique of intra-cytoplasmic
sperm injection, anew infertility treatment which uses
micro-manipulation technology (whereby a sperm is injected
into an egg using specialised instruments) to treat
infertile men.
Born in Tennessee in the US, Jones pursued her education
in Atlanta. It was there that she began working on animals
at the Non-Human Primate research centre (popularly
known as YERKES).
"I love animals," she states. But her expertise
in the use of micro manipulators soon became known and
the Reproductive Biology Research Centre (RBA) invited
her to assist them.
"I don't regret giving up animal research,"
says Jones. "For one thing, there is little money
in it. Besides, government grants are restricted because
of animal rights groups. There are just too many hurdles."
Jones had to quickly master the micro manipulator to
do ICSI on patients. "Once you know how to use
the instrument, you can work on a variety of techniques
yourself. Teaching yourself is the best way to learn,"
she says.
She points out that unlike in the UK where there is
a law limiting the number of embryo implants to three,
in India there is no such law.
Talking of the culture difference, Jones recounts an
instance where an Indian lady was willing to donate
eggs to another who had a deficiency. "Such generosity
can be seen only in India!" she exults.
Such differences there may be, but Jones emphatically
declares that the urge for parenthood is the same everywhere.
"There have been cases in the US where people have
mortgaged their houses to pay for fertility treatment!"
she recounts. While in India ICSI treatment costs about
Rs 80,000 (for a single cycle), it is $10,000 in the
US and £ 3000 in UK.
On a lighter note, Jones recalls, "On hearing
of my work in India, many asked me, 'Why India? Don't
they have enough people as it is?'"
While she plans to be home for Christmas and has several
offers waiting for her there, the lady is clear that
she will continue to travel.
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