At 53 years old, comedienne Ai Ai delas Alas said that she would like to have a child with her husband Gerald Sibayan through in vitro fertilization (IVF) next year.
In an interview with PEP.ph, delas Alas said that she is willing to seek any professional help to get pregnant knowing that she is no longer that young.
“Oo, siyempre hindi na din naman ako bumabata. In case na hindi makuha sa normal, e, di dun tayo sa puwedeng may help ng science,” she said.
Delas Alas, who is a Papal Awardee, also clarified her intention in undergoing IVF since the church has some issues with unnatural way of conceiving a child.
“As help lang naman, e. Basta pag help lang naman, I think okay naman yun and it’s still life. Ang kinondena lang naman, e, yung mga abortion. Ito naman, kumbaga gagawa ka ng buhay, so I think God can understand,” she said.
Mayo Clinic’s website states that IVF is a complex series of procedures wherein “mature eggs are collected (retrieved) from a woman’s ovaries and fertilized by sperm in a lab. Then the fertilized egg (embryo) or eggs are implanted in your uterus.” The said procedure is used to “treat fertility or genetic problems and assist with the conception of a child”.
According to an article by Smart Parenting back in 2016, IVF procedures can cost from P500,000 up to a million especially if couples would have it done abroad. However, some clinics in the Philippines can do one IVF cycle, which will include extraction, fertilization, and implantation, starting from P280,000 to P300,000.
The same source also quoted Virgilio M. Novero, Jr., M.D., head of CARMI and one of the pioneers of IVF practice in the Philippines, as saying “Our success rates are now at 35 to 50 percent for pregnancy, and 20 to 25 percent for live births. The success rates depend on the patient’s profile, the competence of the medical staff, the quality and standards of the IVF lab, and of course the use of cutting-edge technology.”
She said that she is also willing to participate in the Obando Fertility Rites in Bulacan. The Obando Fertility Rites happens every May when married couples would wear traditional Filipino clothing and dance on the streets to honor and bessech the town’s patron saints hoping that they will bless them with a child.
“Oo, lahat naman pinagpi-pray namin, pati kay Apung Mamacalulu, yung pinupuntahan ko lagi sa Angeles [Pampanga]… lahat. Prayers can move mountains and prayers… lahat kaya niyang gawin basta bahala si Lord,” she said.
Delas Alas ended the interview by saying that she is working on all of her showbiz projects right now since she wants to take a break afterwards as preparation to her having a child.
“That’s why ngayon hinahataw ko lahat, kasi magri-rest talaga ako, bedrest. Lahat ng kayang gawin para magkaroon kami ng anak,” she said.
