Every expectant parent hopes their baby grows healthy. At prenatal appointments or while waiting for lab results, parents often anxiously await news about their child’s development.  

Modern medicine offers an increasing number of prenatal tests. In some cases, these tests can be beneficial: early detection of a condition allows parents to develop a treatment plan or even begin treatment while the baby grows in the womb. 

READ: How Can Pro-Lifers Compassionately Address Tragic Miscarriages? Understanding Perinatal Hospice is Step One  

However, for some preborn babies, prenatal tests can result in their lives being ended prematurely—even when the test results are inaccurate. A 2020 report found 85% of the positive results from prenatal tests were false, and recent report from the BBC highlights a couple who helped prove this tragic statistic.  

In 2018, Carly Wesson and Carl Everson received a prenatal test result indicating that their preborn daughter might have a rare disorder known as Patau’s Syndrome (Trisomy 13). While most babies with Trisomy 13 pass away before or shortly after birth, some survive. According to Neurology Journals, as of 2024, the oldest known person with the disorder celebrated 31 years of life. 

(Article update: Wesson and Everson claim that the law was broken when the abortion was signed off on.)

Unfortunately, the Wesson’s care team didn’t have high hopes. They informed the Wessons that their baby would likely have severe care needs and might not survive the pregnancy. Based on this information, the couple decided to abort their preborn child. 

Weeks after the abortion, they received shocking news: the test result was a false positive. Their daughter had no chromosomal abnormalities. According to the Wessons, the physician offered a cold response: “Well, you could have miscarried anyway.” As if this would warm the Wessons’ hearts.  

Sadly, this is not an isolated case. As previously alluded to, noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT) gives false positive results for some rare genetic conditions 80 to 93% of the time, according to the Pew Research Center. While many parents choose life even when faced with rare genetic conditions, some choose abortion based on these results. Physicians often encourage or pressure couples to abort at the first sign of adversity rather than help families develop a treatment plan. 
 
READ: Almost Aborted: Tina’s Story

Even when prenatal tests are accurate, it’s morally reprehensible justify abortion, the killing of a preborn children. Discrimination based on disability shouldn’t be a defense in favor of abortion. After all, society does not tolerate violence against people with disabilities who are already born, even holding a worldwide Paralympics, so why shouldn’t the same standard be applied to children in the womb? 

During Students for Life of America’s (SFLA) Almost Aborted digital billboard campaign in the summer of 2024, we highlighted a handful of people that abortion supporters say “should’ve been aborted.” Through video testimony and a press conference, we proved the opposite: their lives bring value and joy to those around them. 

READ: Heartbeat of Resilience: Baby Indiana’s Journey with Trisomy 18 and the Unwavering Support of Her NICU Mom-Nurse 

Consider the story of Faith. When Jesi and Brad were expecting their daughter, they learned she had Trisomy 18. Their physician pressured them to abort her, warning that continuing the pregnancy would “ruin their marriage, the lives of their other children, and their finances.” Despite this, the couple chose life. Today, Faith is 15 years old, surrounded by family and friends who love her. 

READ: Almost Aborted: Faith’s Story  

Discover even more inspiring stories:  

• Mia Armstrong, the first child with Down syndrome to voice over a cartoon on Netflix.  

• Verity Jacobson, a child diagnosed with Trisomy 18.  

• Bella Santorum, Sen. Rick Santorum’s daughter diagnosed with Trisomy 18.  

• Sofía Jirau, a Victoria’s Secret Model with Down syndrome.  

Every preborn child, regardless of health conditions, deserves life. If we want to be an accepting and inclusive society, this means welcoming all babies and protecting the vulnerable, rather than discarding them. 

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