The courage to love: the affectionate story of a Japanese couple

Mie and Jun went to the same junior high school. Some years later upon meeting again at a class reunion, they fell in love. Soon they started talking about marriage and life together. They made their plans for the big day; however, shortly before the wedding day, Jun discovered that he had a rare hereditary disease that could potentially impact their future children and life together in a dramatic way. He was not sure what to do, so he asked Mie to make the final decision – they could break up or spend the rest of their life together. She decided that life with Jun was her destiny and that together they would try to overcome their life obstacles.

After the wedding, they began to plan their future and family. They recognized that Jun's hereditary condition would need to be taken into consideration before they could have a child. In an effort to better understand their options, they began seeking reproductive medical advice. Some possible solutions came up – pre-implantation screening - but such a procedure was not easily available in Japan. Many hurdles and processes would need to be overcome.

Luckily, through Japan's Keio University Medical Hospital, the couple learned about Taipei's Hope Fertility & PGT Center-Reproductive Clinic's Reproductive Medicine and Embryo Genetic Testing service. They immediately pursued their journey to seek medical assistance in Taiwan.

In April 2018, Japanese doctors and Hope Clinic worked together to come up with an IVF treatment plan. After careful consideration of their options, the couple decided to proceed with the recommended plan and as a result, healthy embryos were transferred in 2019. In October 2020, Mie was able to give birth to a beautiful healthy baby boy.

After two years of hard work, their dream finally came true. Seeing the photos of the baby, I am moved and deeply admire the courage, determination, and love they had for pursuing this baby.