Extending Pre-Implantation Genetic Screening to Private Clinics

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament
Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang
MP for Nee Soon GRC

Question No. 782

To ask the Minister for Health whether the Ministry can consider extending the pilot for the Pre-Implantation Genetic Screening to private clinics so as to increase the number of patients enrolled under the pilot study.

Answer

1.    Pre-Implantation Genetic Screening (PGS) is currently available to any woman who fulfils one of the following clinical criteria: (i) 35 years and above regardless of prognosis, (ii) suffered two or more recurrent implantation failures, or (iii) experienced two or more pregnancy losses.

2.    At present, eligible patients from all private assisted reproduction (AR) clinics and hospitals can be referred to the three public AR centres, namely, National University Hospital (NUH), KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, and Singapore General Hospital for in-vitro fertilisation treatment and embryo biopsy. The biopsied samples will then be sent to the NUH PGS laboratory.

3.    The Ministry of Health is reviewing ways to increase patient recruitment to the pilot study, and we will give careful consideration to the Member of Parliament’s suggestion.