Today, 90% infertility cases can be treated: Dr Firuza Parikh

Over the years, Dr Firuza Parikh has become the final hope for a majority of couples battling infertility. Thanks to her command over In vitro fertilisation (IVF), over 7000 couples have been blessed with children.
She was trained at the Yale School of Medicine in Reproductive Medicine for four years in the mud 1980's. She returned to India to set up and head the first IVF centre in a private hospital at the Jaslok Hospital in 1989. Within a year of its inception, the Jaslok centre was being hailed as an outstanding international centre and began receiving patients from more than 40 different countries as well as from every state of India. In fact, medical tourism in India started with a large number of foreign patients coming in to see her in the early 1990's.
She is the Director, Dept. of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics, Jaslok Hospital and Research Centre. She is the youngest person in the history of the hospital to hold this title when she was appointed in her early 30s. She was also appointed Visiting Professor at Yale and is currently Visiting Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at UCLA. She has written the best seller "The Complete Guide To Becoming Pregnant." The workaholic lady is very vocal about the the hazardous effect of toxins which play havoc with our system. She insists that being childless isn't the end of the world and everybody cannot succeed with IVF.
Visiting her isn't like meeting a doctor but a caring, loving, considerate individual who radiates a positive energy. When she talks about some of her old patients and cases, she gets emotional. She exudes warmth and gets attached to all her patients. It's that personal touch that helps mitigate their pain and problem. Her patients run the gamut of society from international celebrities from Hollywood and Bollywood to the poorest in the country. She treats them all with equal compassion.

Over to her...

So many women come to you as hope. What do you tell them when they expect miracles from you?
In our society, a woman is appreciated when she is a wife and even more when she becomes a mother. There is always a glint of hope when couples come forward when they are having problems with having a baby. When we treat infertility it is very important for them to come as a couple. Many a times, we see women struggling with infertility even though it may be a male factor that is contributing to the lack of a baby.
When women come to me, they have all their hopes pinned on the IVF treatment but I am always very realistic with them, The first meeting consists of understanding their needs, identifying the problem and counselling them. Sometimes I advise them that they do not need IVF and simpler procedures would be preferable. Also that one has to be positive while undergoing IVF treatment. Our team has studied that stress plays a very important role in reproductive failure. Women or couples who are happy and look at the positive side have a much better response to treatment.

Are there some cases that have stayed with you?
Benudevi and her husband came from a very tiny village in Bihar. They had read about a procedure we had devised, called CAT - Cumulus Aided Transfer in 2005. When she came to me, they had travelled almost 72 hours shuffling between buses and trains. She came with a knotted piece of paper in her pallu which was a newspaper item about CAT. She just put it in front of me saying, 'this is what I want and we will not leave from here without a baby.' They had no idea about the cost of the procedure and barely enough money for food and lodging. Fortunately for Benudevi and her husband, our very kind friends Rohiqa and Cyrus Mistry helped them financially. Benudevi and her husband returned with twins born during Navratri. Even today she calls me during the festival.

What is Firuza Parikh like when she is not working?
My needs are very simple. I love to be surrounded by my family and friends. That makes me happiest. My time at home with my husband Rajesh, all the three children and their fiancés is wonderful. Last Sunday, we all met because my daughter Nikita was home for the weekend from an internship in rural education with the MAA Foundation in Gujarat, so we were so excited we spent the afternoon and evening together. Also when I see my team of 40 people succeed, it gives me great fulfilment and satisfaction.

What is an average day like?
It is hectic and begins with surgeries. We start at around 9 am and continue operating till afternoon. Thereafter we see our consultation patients.We get patients from every state in India and from all over the world. I am blessed with an amazing team of 40 bright and hard-working individuals. Most of them like me work seven days a week. We are usually done by 6 pm. Saturdays and Sundays by 4 pm.

What are the kind if problems with which women come to you?
Well, I do not see them as problems but challenges to overcome. Often we see women with polycystic ovaries who are not ovulating. We get single women, who, being tied up with other commitments, cannot have a baby or perhaps want to delay having a baby or postpone plans to get married. In such cases, we take recourse to freezing their eggs. You know that the biological clock is ticking and as a woman approaches 40, this clock is going to slow down. So my advice to such women, who are career-oriented or who have not yet found the right person - freeze your eggs.
The success rate with thawing the eggs depends on the age of the woman; so if someone comes at a younger age, she will have a higher chance of having a baby than say somebody who freezes her eggs at 40. Many times women come to us when they are 39 – 40 because they feel , 'I am still menstruating, let me freeze my eggs' but the advice I give women is that the the earlier you come, the more will be the success with your frozen eggs.

Do you think infertility is on the rise and why?
Yes, we are in an era where the environment is playing havoc with our systems both for men and women. This is something I have been stressing for a while. There are certain toxins which are ingested through our system and then partly excreted. So they partly remain in our system. These are substances like DDT, Organophosphorus compounds, phthalates, bisphenol which are present in things like plastic bottles that we use, What we are witnessing is a loss of the ovarian reserve which means women at a younger age are hitting menopause. We are also seeing a trend of a fall of the sperm counts.

What are your other interests or hobbies?
I enjoy reading which is basically limited to my field – science. Our three children Swapneil Manish and Nikita are greatly into reading, my husband Rajesh is a book lover as you see our house is filled with more than 5000 books. We also love to trek in the mountains whenever we manage to get time.

What do you see yourself doing five years from now?
Devoting myself to work for the underprivileged. I would also like to take Sundays off, stretch my legs and read the morning newspaper at my pace.

Do you think not having a child is still a stigma in our society, or has that changed?
Unfortunately it often is. I tell women that everybody cannot succeed with IVF. IVF has its own limitations so sometimes when the treatment does not work, a woman feels like a failure so I always tell them, 'you are not a failure, the treatment has failed you'.
Today 90 per cent of infertility can be treated - we have options like freezing of eggs, donor eggs, donor sperms, we have ICSI, which is an advanced form of IVF. There is surrogacy. Of course, there is always adoption.

As a parent, what would you advise other parents?
A very important lesson that I have learnt over the years being a parent of three wonderful children, besides being a godmother to a few more, is that we should bring out the best in our children in every way and not pressurise them to perform in school. Also we should cherish and enjoy our time with them. They grow up so quickly. Besides, we are ageing too. We should make the most of our time with our children.