Sir: Your very moving and honest article has prompted a
good deal of soul-search- ing. Being over the age of 35, my wife has twice undergone the amniosentisis test and on both occasions we acquiesced, quite pas- sively, in these ghastly examinations. Nei- ther of our children was diagnosed as hav- ing Down's syndrome, but it has only just occurred to me that I gave no real consider- ation to the tests or to the possible conse- quences resulting from them. In relation to the tests, and as far as I can remember, at least one doctor used the phrase, 'We insist' and another, 'This is quite normal'.
As a Roman Catholic (somewhat lapsed) I have always felt that I had a sort of pro- tective shield from moral dilemmas that might involve the issue of abortion, as though being a Roman Catholic were pro- tection itself. I now realise that the sanctity in which I held the Church has somehow mysteriously been transferred to doctors. Shamefully, I believe that had I been told that either of my children would be born with Down's syndrome and that respected medical opinion suggested an abortion, I
would have replied with, 'Well, if you say so, doctor.' Why is the phrase, 'I was only following orders' ringing in my head?
I wish you and your family all the joy in the world.
James Woods 26c Wellesley Road, London W4
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