Chinese woman, 27, has had SEVENTEEN abortions in six years

A young woman in China has been told by doctors she might never be able to have babies in the future after undergoing 17 abortions in six years.

It is said that the woman’s womb was so badly damaged after all the procedures that her uterus lining was ‘as thin as a piece of paper,’ according to a doctor at the Shiyan Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital.

The patient, known by a pseudonym Xiao Ju, has been in a relationship with her boyfriend for six years and the couple don’t use contraception, reportedly Shiyan Evening News.

The woman claimed to the doctors that she was not ready to get married and was not capable of raising a child, therefore she had decided to terminate all pregnancies, said the report. 

Any babies born out of wedlock in China will not be issued an ID, which means they will not be entitled to state benefits or the right to receive education.  

Dr. Zhao Qin, head of gynaecology at Shiyan Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital in Central China’s Hubei Province, said she had urged a pregnant Xiao Ju to keep her child when she visited the hospital again this month. 

Xiao Ju has had abortions so often she is billed ‘a regular customer’ at the hospital (file photo)

Dr. Zhao explained to her that it might be her last chance at motherhood. 

However, the 27-year-old insisted on the procedure, leaving Zhao and her colleagues no choice but to perform what was the patient’s 17th abortion in just six years. 

It is said that Xiao Ju has visited the hospital so often that she doctors call her ‘a regular customer’.  

Most young people in China know little about sexual health due to the lack of sex education at schools. 

Some 99 per cent of Chinese adults are ill-informed about sexual health, according to leading Chinese sexologist Peng Xiaohui, and around 44 per cent of Chinese university students are said to have had no sex education.

Xiao Ju and her partner reportedly don’t use any contraception. 

In China, babies born out of wedlock won’t be given an ID and cannot go to school (file photo)

Doctor Zhao realised the severity of Xiao Ju’s physical condition while examining her for her latest procedure.

‘I found her uterus lining to be critically thin, like a piece of paper, due to the repeated abortions she had had,’ Zhao said.

She added: ‘Her uterus was also badly scarred.’

Zhao said she advised the patient to keep her child: ‘If you don’t have to have this abortion, then keep this baby, because it may be very, very difficult for you to get pregnant again.’

However, the patient’s reply was that she did not plan to get married, and did not have the ability to raise a child, insisting that the abortion take place, Zhao recalled.

The medic said: ‘It might’ve been her most precious child.’ 

The young woman and her boyfriend of six years live in a city in Hubei Province (file photo)

Generally speaking, having an abortion won’t affect the patient’s chances of becoming pregnant in the future, although there could be ‘a small risk’ to her fertility if she develops a womb infection that isn’t treated promptly, according to NHS.

However, having repeated abortions can raise the risk of life-threatening problems for future pregnancies, according to a 2012 study. 

The study, which was carried out among women in England and Wales, found that those who had three or more were up to three times more likely to have a future baby early – even before 28 weeks in the womb – and of a poor weight.

Those who had two abortions before their first child also had a greater chance of giving birth prematurely.