THE FUTURE OF FERTILITY

She has as many feathers in her cap as the number of degrees and accomplishments she holds in her medical field. Dr. Priya Selvaraj MD, DNB, MCE, MNAMS, FICOG, a senior consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology with specialisation in reproductive medicine and clinical embryology has 25 years of experience and is currently serving as the Director of GG Hospital, Fertility research and women's specialty center, Chennai.

- BY NAMITA GUPTA

After an MBBS from Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute, Chennai, she pursued a Master's Degree in Clinical Embryology and Andrology at the Jones Institute of Reproductive Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School Norfolk, United States of America. She is a fellow of the Indian College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (FICOG) and has published many journals and research presentations at both national and international levels. Dr Priya commissioned India's first births of a singleton and twins born from frozen thawed oocytes, setting precedence for egg freezing among women for preserving their fertility.

She has also established a successful preimplantation genetic screening and diagnosis program at GG which resulted in South India's first twin births following this procedure. And that's not all...she is the name behind India's first successful birth using surrogacy by extracting eggs from a transpositioned ovary after the patient had undergone womb removal for cancer. Besides many awards, she is also the recipient of the outstanding woman achiever award from Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University, the Hindu generational pride award, the Wellness Ambassador Award from Shri Rakesh Sharma (First Indian Astronaut), ISAR Excellence in Embryology Award and ISAR Dronacharya Award. Under her current tenure, she has managed to get an NABH accreditation (first fertility center in Tamilnadu) in the shortest time possible. More than 25,000 plus babies have been born at GG, as a result of assisted reproduction since the year 1989. Here's an intimate discussion with the doctor of repute...

1. What was your dream career in your growing up days? Can you share your journey briefly and how you became passionate about fertility medicine?