“What would you like to do with your deceased fetus? Take it home for burial or cremation? Or leave it for collective cremation?” These were the choices parents faced for years in hospitals after pregnancy loss. But since 2017, parents at Amsterdam UMC and nearby hospitals have been systematically offered a third, lesser-known option: “Would you like to donate your fetus to science?”

Initially, this was a question we barely dared to ask when establishing the Dutch Fetal Biobank. However, it quickly became clear that many parents feel relieved to have this option available. “Then the pregnancy wasn’t in vain,” is something we often hear. Now, we even receive requests from hospitals outside our region, with parents explicitly asking for the opportunity to donate their fetus.

Our belief that the Fetal Biobank provides an important choice for parents in one of the most challenging moments of their lives has been confirmed. Research by PhD candidate Yousif Dawood involved 1,272 parents who experienced a second-trimester pregnancy loss at Amsterdam UMC. This article, published in the prestigious journal JAMA Network Open, provided valuable insights into the choices and considerations parents make.

The most striking finding: since the Dutch Fetal Biobank was introduced, 30% of the parents asked have chosen to donate their fetus to science, where previously this was a rare occurrence. This not only confirms the value of this option but also shows that many parents actively seek ways to give meaning to their loss.

Reflecting on the hesitation we initially felt about asking this question, we can now confidently say that this option is a welcome choice for many parents. This encourages us to engage more hospitals across the Netherlands in this valuable initiative, so parents nationwide can be offered this option.

Would you like to support us in this important work?

A donation to the Little Miracles Foundation makes it possible to arrange specialized couriers across the Netherlands, ensuring that donations to the Dutch Fetal Biobank can also be collected in cities like Groningen and Maastricht.

More information about the Dutch Fetal Biobank, for parents, hospitals, and researchers, is available at fetalbiobank.com.