Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Where Your Contribution Counts!
    eNewsletter
    Support Us!
  • Record is Archived

    This article is now archived and is closed to further replies.

    Jefferson Adams
    Jefferson Adams

    Celiac Diagnosis Helps Prove Child Was Fathered by Fertility Doctor

    Reviewed and edited by a celiac disease expert.

    A celiac disease diagnosis was part of a puzzle that led a couple and their child to the fertility doctor who had helped them to conceive.

    Celiac Diagnosis Helps Prove Child Was Fathered by Fertility Doctor - Fertility doctor secretly fathered patients' children. Photo: CBC
    Caption: Fertility doctor secretly fathered patients' children. Photo: CBC

    Celiac.com 11/21/2016 - Even early on, strange inconsistencies caused Dan and Davina Dixon to wonder about her daughter, Rebecca. With dark hair and olive skin, Rebecca looked visibly different from her fair-complected parents. She looked different enough to wonder, as a child, if was adopted, if Dan and Davina were really her biological parents, as they assured her they were.

    Later, in her twenties, Rebecca developed celiac disease, which usually runs in families, even though no one else in their extended family suffered from it. Most of this was merely fodder for curiosity, until the day Davina saw a Facebook post that mentioned how rare it is for parents with blue eyes to have a child with brown eyes.

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A12):
    Wondering about Rebecca's brown eyes, Davina went to the family doctor, who suggested a blood test. That's when the real mystery began: The blood test revealed that Rebecca's dad, Dan, was not, in fact, her biological father. There was absolutely no doubt. Dan's blood type was AB, while Rebecca's was O-Positive. That makes it impossible for Dan to be her father. A paternity test followed, and confirmed the blood results. There was simply no chance that Dan was Rebecca's biological father.

    Naturally, the Dixons began to search for answers. As reported by Kidspot, Rebecca was raised believing that Dan and Davina were her biological parents. The couple had tried for years to conceive a child. Unsuccessful, they turned to Dr. Norman Barwin, a gynecologist and fertility expert known by many as Canada's "baby god."

    The couple wondered whether there could have been some sort of mix-up in Barwin's office. Eventually, they noticed Rebecca bore a striking resemblance to Dr. Barwin, himself. Soon after that, as CTV News reported, a woman conceived at the same clinic learned that she was genetically related to Barwin. A DNA test confirmed that Rebecca and the woman were half-sisters, and their father was Dr. Barwin. Apparently, Barwin's role as a sperm donor to his own medical practice was kept secret from both sets of parents.

    The Dixon family is now suing Dr. Barwin for negligence and breach of trust. The lawsuit requests that Barwin turn over a DNA sample, to determine if any other children conceived at his clinic are his offspring, and to notify them accordingly.

    Read more at:

    • Open Original Shared Link
    • Open Original Shared Link 
    • Open Original Shared Link


    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    Guest AWOL

    Wow. The Dr. Barwin article was a real life genetic suspense article. Had me scrolling through the article at a rate of speed- Mr. Adams. I always enjoy your work. This was a true genetic suspense article, knowing the genetic inconsistencies suspecting the Dr. I the reader yelling oh no, no way at the screen, then the answer resolved as the reader me- suspected. An awful violation of ethics and humanity in medical/science field. Just terrible the patients should have been told and agreed to the terms prior to in vitro. The Dr. apparently knew his personal success rate but his ethics are abominable. Well Rebecca was meant to be, her relatives will grow (I am sure there are more as the lawsuit will force to be revealed). Perhaps Dr. Barwin will find another profession as his license to practice will be expiring soon. Maybe the family in the fortune of this bizarre misfortune will use the DNA to help the celiac community.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites


    Guest
    This is now closed for further comments

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Help Celiac.com:
    Donate
  • About Me

    Jefferson Adams

    Jefferson Adams is Celiac.com's senior writer and Digital Content Director. He earned his B.A. and M.F.A. at Arizona State University. His articles, essays, poems, stories and book reviews have appeared in numerous magazines, journals, and websites, including North American Project, Antioch Review, Caliban, Mississippi Review, Slate, and more. He is the author of more than 2,500 articles on celiac disease. His university coursework includes studies in science, scientific methodology, biology, anatomy, physiology, medicine, logic, and advanced research. He previously devised health and medical content for Colgate, Dove, Pfizer, Sharecare, Walgreens, and more. Jefferson has spoken about celiac disease to the media, including an appearance on the KQED radio show Forum, and is the editor of numerous books, including "Cereal Killers" by Scott Adams and Ron Hoggan, Ed.D.

    >VIEW ALL ARTICLES BY JEFFERSON ADAMS

     


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):





    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):




  • Related Articles

    Jefferson Adams
    Celiac.com 05/26/2016 - An Australian dietary organization has published a study showing the high and hidden costs of a gluten-free diet, and is calling for a subsidy program to help offset those extra costs.
    A newly published study quantifying the cost of gluten-free foods shows a family with two children can pay nearly 20% more for gluten-free food. The costs are even greater for single men on welfare.
    The study is the first of its kind to prove "that a gluten-free diet is a significant financial burden for many Australian family types," say University of Wollongong researchers Kelly Lambert and Caitlin Ficken, the study's authors.
    The study was supported by the Dieticians Association (DAA) of Australia, and the results appear in its scientific journal Nutrition and Dietetics...


    Jefferson Adams
    Celiac.com 11/15/2016 - The YouTube video that helped to spark litigation against blood pressure drug Olmesartan, also marketed as Benicar, was made by celiac disease expert Dr. Joseph Murray, a gastroenterologist and a professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, New York, who is very familiar with the drug's side effects.
    In July 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning to patients and doctors that the popular blood pressure medication Benicar had been linked to a severe side effect called sprue-like enteropathy. The side effect was easily confused with celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity, and caused serious problems in many patients, including cases of irreparable gut damage.
    A week after the FDA's warning, Dr. Joseph Murray took to YouTube...


  • Recent Activity

    1. - JustGemi replied to JustGemi's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      6

      SCARED: What Do These Test Results Mean?

    2. - Scott Adams replied to Raquel2021's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      1

      Went to see a gastroenterologist today and

    3. - Scott Adams replied to RILEYW's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      11

      I don’t have a diagnosis but I’m pretty positive I have celiac and have ongoing GI Problems

    4. - Scott Adams replied to JustGemi's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      6

      SCARED: What Do These Test Results Mean?

    5. - JustGemi replied to JustGemi's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      6

      SCARED: What Do These Test Results Mean?


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      120,472
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    Jessiehags91
    Newest Member
    Jessiehags91
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      120.2k
    • Total Posts
      1m

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):





  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Popular Now

    • JustGemi
    • Linedancegal
    • Hannah24
      9
    • jessiemariecar
    • Rhonda H
  • Popular Articles

    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
  • Upcoming Events

×
×
  • Create New...