Is it a Baby or Fetus When Treated Before Birth?

On April 13, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel carried a front page story about an unborn baby boy who received lifesaving treatment in utero. And, herein lies the problem for the pro-abortionists. Was the little boy a “baby” or a “fetus?”

The mother and father knew he was a baby — in fact, they refused to “terminate” their son upon learning he had developed a tumor that affected his heart and impeded development of his lung. In a sad commentary on the medical profession, “termination” was the first and immediate option suggested. The baby boy was already 18 weeks old.

Even the Journal Sentinel had a hard time deciding. It was a “baby” in the headline and some parts of the story, and a “fetus” elsewhere. We right-to-lifers have come to detest the term “fetus,” not because it is medically inaccurate, but because we know it is the way pro-abortionists de-humanize the child. It just sounds so much better to kill a fetus than a baby. Add a gender — and you surely don’t want to say that you support killing a baby boy or girl.

This story has a very happy ending. Minimal treatment outside the womb did not work. The mother’s health worsened, the baby was going to die. So, the parents agreed to a delicate, risky in utero surgery to drain the tumor and allow the baby’s heart and lungs to escape the impact of the tumor. Success!

Baby Aden was born prematurely in January. He had surgery to remove the remainder of the tumor and part of his lung.

Baby Aden is incredibly fortunate. His parents knew he was a baby — their baby — and wanted him to live. Medical technology came to his rescue and saved his life. If every unborn baby was known as just that — a baby instead of a fetus — wouldn’t parents and medical professionals be more inclined to do everything possible to help him or her live?