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A 29-year-old mother from Zhengzhou, Henan province, has ignited heated debate online after opting for in-vitro fertilization (IVF) to have a second child while her young son battles leukaemia.
Jiang, a single mother and food delivery rider, says she made the decision to ensure her son would not face loneliness if she were to pass away, but her choice has drawn both criticism and sympathy.
Jiang’s challenges began in 2022 when her son was diagnosed with leukaemia after a routine checkup revealed abnormal blood tests. Shortly after, her husband divorced her, expressed a desire to abandon their son, and insisted on changing his surname to hers. Left to care for her son alone, Jiang worked tirelessly as a delivery rider while accumulating over 500,000 yuan (US$69,000) in medical debt.
Despite the financial strain, Jiang pursued IVF to have a second child, saying she didn’t want her son to endure the same loneliness she experienced as an orphan. “I grew up without parents, and I’ve always felt a profound loneliness. If I passed away, my son would be left without any family. I wanted him to have a sibling,” she explained to Red Star News.
Jiang’s first IVF attempt in April 2023 failed, but she succeeded on her second try a year later. However, while working a delivery job, Jiang experienced abdominal pain and gave birth prematurely to a baby girl on November 13. Born at just 31 weeks and weighing only 1.5kg, the newborn requires intensive care costing over 3,000 yuan (US$420) daily.
Jiang has turned to crowdfunding to cover her daughter’s medical expenses, adding to the financial burden left by her son’s treatments. She now earns between 3,000 and 6,000 yuan per month delivering food, an income far from sufficient to manage her growing debt.
Although Jiang’s son has shown significant improvement and does not require a bone marrow transplant, her decision to have another child has sparked a wave of online backlash. Critics argue that her choice is reckless, given her precarious financial situation and her son’s ongoing recovery.
“Divorced, a son battling leukaemia, working in food delivery, heavily in debt, and undergoing IVF for a second child – it’s hard to believe someone would choose to connect all these dots in their life,” one netizen commented.
Others questioned her reasoning, saying, “The younger one is born into hardship, the elder is trapped in sickness, and the mother is buried in struggle. Why force this upon them?”
However, some netizens have expressed support for Jiang, urging others to show compassion. “The child is already here, and the situation is what it is. She has a long road ahead. Let’s support this mother!”
Source: SCMP
