Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, February 22, 1992 TAG: 9202220398
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A5 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ALEXANDRIA LENGTH: Medium
FERTILITY DOCTOR `LYING OR MISTAKEN'
An infertility doctor charged with fraud was either lying or mistaken when he told some women they were pregnant, a medical expert said Friday.Nonetheless, the expert, testifying for the defense, said he believed Dr. Cecil Jacobson "was practicing perfectly good medicine."
Dr. Robert Harrison, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology from Dublin, Ireland, endorsed many of Jacobson's treatment methods, including use of hormone injections to help women get pregnant.
But he said he had doubts about some of the pregnancies Jacobson diagnosed.
Jacobson is charged with 52 counts of fraud and perjury. He is accused of using hormone injections to trick some women into believing they were pregnant when they weren't, and of using his own sperm to father up to 75 children by artificial insemination patients while claiming to use an anonymous donor program.
Prosecutor Randy Bellows described last week's testimony by patient Mary Sutphin, who said Jacobson told her she was 10-1/2 weeks pregnant, but another doctor said he found no evidence of a pregnancy.
She said she went back to Jacobson the same day and he told her the baby was sleeping.
"Doesn't that suggest to you that Dr. Jacobson lied to the patient?" Bellows said.
"It suggests either he lied or he made a mistake on his ultrasounds," Harrison said. "I would agree with you that I had my doubts about this particular pregnancy."
Harrison said he reached the same conclusion about patient Deborah Gregory, who testified last week that a doctor found no evidence she was pregnant the day after Jacobson said her 18-week pregnancy was progressing well.
Harrison said he examined Jacobson's records on 118 patients and "I didn't find evidence of widespread problems such as you are suggesting."
"But you're relying on Dr. Jacobson's files" and assuming everything in them was true, Bellows said.
Harrison said that a pregnancy test could show a positive result after one injection with the hormone HCG used by Jacobson. Many patients have testified they showed positive pregnancy tests after Jacobson gave them multiple injections of the hormone.
But Harrison endorsed use of the hormone to help a woman get pregnant and to help her avoid miscarriage.
Based on Jacobson's medical records, "I thought he was practicing perfectly good medicine," Harrison said. "This is entirely within the guidelines for managing infertility patients."
Another witness, Dr. Mason Andrews, an obstetrician and gynecologist, said Friday that Jacobson was known as a pioneer in his field. Jacobson is credited with introducing the use of amniocentesis in this country to detect fetal defects.
But under cross-examination, Andrews noted that Jacobson's resume said he was a resident at George Washington University Hospital. Previous testimony has indicated that Jacobson did not perform such a residency.
Several patients whose children allegedly were fathered by Jacobson testified that they were concerned that their children could meet and marry someone fathered by the same donor. Some said they were concerned about an increased risk of genetic defects resulting from the birth of child whose parents have the same biological father.
Dr. Mark Evans, a geneticist at Wayne State University in Detroit, said he thought the risk of that happening was "absolutely minuscule."