A chilling medical test that I fear will make humanity so much the poorer

Oct 3, 2016 by

by Dominic Lawson, Mailonline:

Though just over a decade has passed, it seems only yesterday that Sally Phillips and her husband Andrew came with their tiny baby, Olly, to spend the weekend with us.

Olly was born with Down’s syndrome; our daughter Domenica, ten years older than Olly, also has the condition. Mutual friends had suggested to Sally that she get in touch, as she was struggling to come to terms with her situation.

How wonderful it is to see Sally and Olly now — as the whole country can on Wednesday, when BBC2 broadcasts an extraordinarily powerful documentary presented by the actress and screenwriter (better known for Miranda and the Bridget Jones movies). Now she has three boys, and the programme shows just how happy they are all larking about together, with Olly — alert, articulate and witty — at the centre of this vibrant family.

But her programme is also a dark one, as its title suggests. It is called ‘A World Without Down’s Syndrome?’

The reason is that the NHS is about to launch a new, more accurate scanning method for detecting if an unborn child has the extra 21st chromosome that defines Down’s syndrome.

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