The UK couple who wanted to use an embryo sex screening technique to have a daughter revealed last week that they travelled to Italy to undergo the procedure, but it did not result in any female embryos. Alan and Louise Masterton went abroad for their treatment last July because IVF (in vitro fertilisation) embryo sex selection is not permitted in Britain unless it is used to avoid a serious, gender-linked genetic condition.

The Mastertons have four sons, but their only daughter, Nicole, died in an accident aged three. Although Mrs Masterton had been sterilised after Nicole's birth, the couple wanted to try for another baby girl using IVF. But no UK fertility clinics were willing to challenge the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFEA)'s policy on embryo sex selection, so the Mastertons paid £6000 for treatment at the private Biogenesi clinic in Rome. However, following IVF and preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), they obtained only a single, male embryo, which they have asked doctors to donate to an infertile couple.

Speaking on a BBC documentary entitled 'Fertility Tourists' last week, Mr Masterton said they were not seeking to replace Nicole, but wanted to heal the family. 'PGD was being denied to us for the most absurd reason and it would have been intolerable for us to live the rest of our lives knowing there was treatment out there which could help us' he said. According to newspaper reports, the Mastertons' request to have the HFEA's regulations amended is currently under review, and a report is expected in July.