She has been told by her doctor that her only chance of conceiving is to have five embryos implanted into her womb during IVF treatment. It may take a while going through the courts, and it may be that the number of embryos does not increase while we are still trying our IVF treatment. But for other couples in the future I think it is very, very important. The leading fertility expert Mohamed Taranissi, of the Assisted Reproduction Centre, is backing Helen's case - and that of another couple in their forties. He says the blanket ban on using more than three embryos is denying many older women the chance of a child.
Every patient is different.
The three embryo limit is intended to minimise the risk of multiple pregnancies. The number of triplets being born has increased four-fold as a direct result of IVF treatment. Dr John Mills say some women should accept they will never be mothers Many are born prematurely, and therefore are at greater risk of having serious health problems. Some experts believe that rather than relaxing the rules, they should be tightened up so that the maximum number of embryos that can be implanted is reduced from three to two. Dr John Mills, of the British Fertility Society, said some women had to accept that they would not be able to have children.