Male infertility will be ignored as long as conception is seen as a woman ’s issue | Barbara Ellen

Could prejudice explain why research into sperm counts fails to win funding?Are men ignoring their “biological clocks”? Or is it rather that they are not adequately served by science, which, in turn is being stymied by lack of funding?The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority ’s2014-16 report reveals, among other findings, that male infertility is the most common reason (37%) for British couples seeking IVF. Meanwhile, elsewhere, it ’s revealed that male infertility is considered such an “unsexy” research area that it’s nigh-on impossible to get funding. While pooled 2017 research found that sperm counts in the US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand hadhalved in 40 years, and one in 20 young men had a low sperm count, the science of male infertility remains stuck at the 1950s level of counting sperm on laboratory slides.Continue reading...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Fertility problems Society Health Science Source Type: news