Janet Farrell Leontiou, pregnant with Zachary and Andreas in 2002. |
According to the Cerebral Palsy Outreach Network, twins and other multiples are about four times more likely than single birth children to be affected by the disease, a neurological disorder that impairs muscle coordination. Here, Rye, NY, mom Janet Farrell Leontiou, 59, a professor of communications and author of the book “What Do the Doctors Say?,” tells The Post’s JANE RIDLEY why she believes in vitro fertilization (IVF) played a part in creating her son’s disability.
By Jane Ridley
New York Post
BLINKING away tears, I watched as my [then] 8-year-old son Zachary studiously played the trombone at his school’s annual concert.
Anyone looking on would have thought the tears came from happiness and pride — but they were bittersweet because Zachary’s twin brother, Andreas, was not sharing the spotlight. Instead, he was sitting at home in a wheelchair being cared for by my husband, Chris.
Andreas has cerebral palsy and is nonverbal, and I’m angry. After years of tests with specialists, not one doctor has discovered the reason why Andreas, now 14, has cerebral palsy. He was not deprived of oxygen at birth, nor did he have a stroke in his first few months of life.
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Plenty of children are born with CP who were not conceived from IVF. Why do you let Andreas' misfortune overshadow Zach's life?
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