He thought his sperm donation would be for only 5 kids. He fathered at least 17, suit says
An Oregon doctor donated his sperm to a fertility clinic when he was a medical school student in 1989, hoping to help infertile couples and to promote research in fertility.
He says he was told his sperm would be used to conceive only five children out of state. But after discovering he is now father to at least 17 children, some of whom live in Oregon, the doctor is suing for more than $5 million.
Dr. Bryce Cleary and his attorneys filed the suit Wednesday against Oregon Health & Science University after they say the clinic violated their agreement, caused him and his family emotional distress and might have used his sperm to father even more children than already known.
OHSU spokesperson Tamara Hargens-Bradley said in a statement to USA TODAY that the hospital treats "any allegation of misconduct with the gravity it deserves," but declined to comment on the case citing patient privacy.
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At a news conference Wednesday, Cleary said he was a first year medical school student at OHSU when the fertility clinic recruited him and other male students to donate their sperm.
Cleary was assured his donation would be used to father no more than five children, and that only mothers on the East Coast would receive the donation, he said.
"So can you imagine his shock when, after 30 years, Dr. Cleary recently received the revelation that no less than 17 children have been born from his donations, all of which occurred here in the state of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest," his attorney, Chris Best, told reporters.
Cleary, who had three children and an adopted daughter with his wife, said he made the stipulations when he donated his sperm to prevent his custodial children from engaging with the children born out of his donation. He said without the promises, he would not have donated his sperm.
However, at least two of the children born from his donation attended the same school as the children he raised, the lawsuit says. And given that the hospital required mothers who received their donation to self report their pregnancies and births, Cleary says he has no clue the full extent of the offspring from his donation.
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One of Cleary's children speaking at the news conference said she was able to determine that the doctor was her biological father through Ancestry.com and the donor profile OHSU gave her.
"I am expecting my third child right now of my own," said Allysen Allee, 25, conceived from Cleary's donation. "And the idea of my children having dozens and dozens of cousins that will be their ages and in the area is concerning."
USA TODAY has reached out to Ancestry.com for comment.
Allee said that she sought her siblings through genealogical websites because she grew up as an only child but wasn't necessarily looking for a relationship with her biological father. She has since become close with at least one of the siblings she met.
"I feel for (Cleary) significantly," she said. "I can't imagine waking up with this burden."
Cleary said he was first contacted through another biological child on Ancestry.com. He called the hospital "deceitful and reckless" and said their actions have caused "irreparable harm."
"Even if you're unknowingly part of something that's just incredibly irresponsible, you feel an obligation. It's very difficult," he said. "I never imagined being in this situation."
Contributing: The Associated Press. Follow USA TODAY's Ryan Miller on Twitter @RyanW_Miller
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sperm donor Bryce Cleary sues Oregon Health & Science University
