Pregnancy is a tough journey, but it can be even tougher finding out that your child may not survive it.
In an emotional Facebook post that went viral, founder of humanitarian relief and development agency Radion International, Eugene Wee, shared the story of his wife, Puu Kanokrat and their unborn child.
In the post, he mentioned that their child, five months into the pregnancy, was found to have a rare genetic condition called trisomy 18, also known as Edwards’ syndrome. This condition can cause severe mental disabilities, physical deformations, and in some cases, the foetus cannot survive the pregnancy. Unfortunately for Eugene and Puu, their baby had all three of those issues associated with the condition, which is extremely rare.
“It caused a stir in the medical faculty and the professors requested for the opportunity to do a detailed scan, all while exposing medical students to this rare condition as much as possible.”
“It was painful for her. Hearing them discuss about her own child’s brain, the enlarged heart, the missing arms, the face, the lack of organs etc. But there she lay exhausted emotionally, physically and mentally, just so future medical doctors could learn.”
Source: Huggies
Because of how severe their child’s condition was, the doctors at Chiangmai University wanted to keep the full foetus for future studies and for other medical students to learn. This meant that Puu had to go through labour and give birth to a stillborn instead of undergoing surgery to ensure the baby’s body remained intact. Knowing this, they decided to go ahead with it and donate their child’s body for science.
“She had endured through the emotional pain, but yet this meant that she will have to go through even more – a whole lot more of immense physical pain – just so the child’s body will be intact for medical research.”
“We spoke through it, and she calmly replied, ‘If my child needs to die, then it should not have to be in vain’.”
After 33 hours of painful labour, their 5-month-old foetus was delivered and his body was rushed to a nearby facility for preservation. Eugene shared this in hopes that future students and doctors would know the story behind the foetus they were studying so that they can improve mankind.
His story touched the hearts of thousands, many of them sending kind words and condolences to the couple.
Our condolences go out to Eugene and Puu, and we admire them for their bravery and hope in the face of such tragedy.
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