How Couple who gave birth to wrong baby in IVF mix-up are reunited with biological daughter (Video)
A California couple has opened up about a devastating IVF mix-up that saw them give birth to the wrong baby.
Daphna Cardinale and her husband Alexander reunited with their biological daughter Zoe in January 2020 after giving birth to another woman’s baby – the same woman who gave birth to their own child after a fertility lab mixed up their embryos.
In an interview with CBS Mornings, the couple, who welcomed a baby girl in September 2019, revealed that they learned some months after her birth that their daughter belonged to someone else.
Alexander told the program that he had a “weird gut reaction” after welcoming the newborn he thought was his daughter. The infant had darker features than both Daphna and Alexander, fuelling their suspicions that something was amiss.
Eventually, the pair ordered a DNA test, and recalled how “terrified” and “numb” they felt at the prospect that their daughter would prove not to be theirs. Ultimately, the test confirmed their worst fear.
Daphna said: “When I found out she wasn’t mine, somehow I poured more love into her. I was just so scared I was going to lose her, which I ultimately did.”
The babies were four months old when their respective parents swapped the infants so that each couple would finally have their biological child.
What the Cardinales found particularly difficult was having to break the news to their eldest child, five-year-old Olivia.
Alexander explained to CBS Mornings: “Having to tell her that her four-month-old baby sister wasn’t really her sister and that there was another baby that — how do you say that to a five-year-old?
“And we’ve struggled with that for so long. We finally told her and I think it’s really profoundly changed her.”
He also opened up about the “guilt” he and his wife felt after giving up the first baby for their biological daughter, comparing the loss of the former to “mourning”.
It was also revealed in the program that the couple is now suing the LA-based California Center for Reproductive Health (CCRH) and its owner, Dr. Eliran Mor, for medical malpractice, breach of contract, negligence, and fraud. The lawsuit is seeking a jury trial and unspecified damages.
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