Article :Quads second time round world first
In Queensland Sunday Mail 29/5/05
:
Four by four!
ELISSA LAWRENCE
29may05
A QUEENSLAND woman is pregnant with quads for the second time, in what is believed to be a world first.
Dale Chalk, 26, of Strathpine in Brisbane's north, is due to give birth in December to her second consecutive set of quads.
Mrs Chalk and her husband, Darren, 34, a security guard, became parents to quads in August using an anonymous sperm donor through the Queensland Fertility Group.
The couple also have a daughter, Shelby, 2, conceived using the same donor.
After the birth of her first set of quads – Ellie, Emma, Joseph and Samuel, who were born 13 weeks early – Mrs Chalk said they wanted as many as 12 children and said she would be delighted if she had another set of quads.
"If we had quads again, that would be the bee's knees. That would be the icing on the cake," she said at the time.
It is believed Mrs Chalk will be the first mother to give birth to consecutive sets of quads.
Australian Multiple Birth Association national chairwoman Cathy Vellacott said the thought of having eight children aged under two was "mind-boggling".
"I have never heard of another family being in that situation – it's extremely unique," she said.
"Four babies at once is pretty amazing and if you are going to do it again, it's certainly got the 'wow' factor."
Dr Warren DeAmbrosis of the Queensland Fertility Group said he had not heard of another case of a woman having two sets of quads.
"It's very rare, it could be a world first."
Dr DeAmbrosis said he was happy for the couple but was concerned because of the risks in carrying four babies.
"I am very happy because that's what they wanted, but I'm not happy that a multiple pregnancy has occurred again," he said.
"I have big concerns because there's an increased risk of premature birth and it's not something I was looking for."
In February, Mrs Chalk said that the family was using a staggering 250 nappies, four tins of formula and three packs of wipes a week.
But despite the economic drain and hard work, she said she wouldn't have it any other way.
"I feel I am lucky," she said.
"It's been a bit hectic but it's been better than what I thought.
"All four of them sleep through the night. It's fantastic."
This helps explain why the couple can't wait to have more babies.
All of the Chalk children were conceived using artificial insemination by a sperm donor who shared Mr Chalk's physical characteristics.
Mr Chalk has a rare condition that means he cannot produce live sperm.
In the procedure, doctors stimulated Mrs Chalk's ovaries to produce more than one egg and then inseminated her with the donor sperm.
The family lives with Mrs Chalk's parents, who extended their house to fit in the new grandchildren.
When the quads were born, Mrs Chalk's mother, Sue, resigned from her job as a nurse to help as full-time carer for the babies.
The family has been helped out with baby capsules donated by Queensland Ambulance, cartons of nappies donated from Huggies and Coles, formula supplied by Nestle and Wyeth and some baby food from Heinz.
Monash IVF Queensland's Dr Clare Boothroyd said: "I've never heard of anything like this before. It is highly, highly unusual.
"I can't even believe that someone is fronting up for fertility treatment so soon after having a first set of multiples.
"The Monash policy is cancelling if there is more than three eggs. We would have never proceeded. There are many of us (in the profession) who are very down on higher-order multiples because of the risks."
