The medical board of KEM Hospital has been instructed by the Bombay High Court to report whether or not a lady with severe cancer can have her over-24-week pregnancy medically terminated.
The woman (24), along with her husband (34), petitioned the high court for permission to seek medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) because the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act prohibits her from seeking MTP. On Monday, Justices Ajay Gadkari and Neela Gokhale issued their ruling.
The Uttar Pradesh couple is in Mumbai as the woman receives medical attention at Tata Memorial Hospital.
She claimed in her appeal that she was diagnosed with cancer of the tail of her pancreas, which had progressed to her liver during pregnancy. As a pregnant woman, she was deemed unsuitable for palliative chemotherapy by the doctors at Tata Memorial Centre (TMC).
The petition was based on a letter dated June 26 from a TMC physician referring patients for MTP to the obstetrics and gynecology divisions of KEM/Wadia hospitals. Given that the patient's general conditions prohibit chemotherapy, he asked that they assess the patient's suitability for the treatment and consider her for medical termination. The letter said that the doctors would like to proceed with a liver biopsy and a palliative care plan as soon as MTP is approved.
According to the doctors' assessment, the petition stated that she will not be eligible for palliative treatment to assist in alleviating her cancer-related symptoms and lessen her suffering if the pregnancy continues. "The petitioners state that termination of pregnancy is immediately required as the petitioner no 1 (wife) is miserably suffering from the ailment and having unbearable pain," added the statement.
Anamika Malhotra, the state's lawyer, was requested by the judges to verify the contents of the doctor's letter, and she did. Manisha Devkar, the petitioners' attorney, stated that the woman is in pain and that carrying out the pregnancy puts her life in danger. Subsequently, the judges instructed KEM authorities to form a medical board to evaluate her and determine her suitability for MTP. They told her to appear in person before the board on Tuesday, and they gave the board till Wednesday to submit its report. "The report shall also reflect the effect of the pregnancy on the petitioner's physical and mental health after taking into consideration her actual and foreseeable environment," the judges stated.
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/Priyanka Pandey/MSM)
