Duke Health Patients Find Out Fertility Doctor Used His Own Sperm for Treatments

A shocking discovery rocked former Duke Health patients when they learned their fertility specialist, Dr. Charles Peete, secretly used his own sperm to create at least twelve babies during treatments at Duke Hospital.

Patient Laurie Kruppa uncovered the truth about her three children born through Peete's unauthorized actions at the clinic. "We trusted him," Kruppa said, per WRAL. The truth came to light when one of her kids traced his biological roots back to Peete.

Duke Health addressed the matter in a brief statement: "For several years, Duke Health has been in communication with those individual patients and family members who have come forward and who have desired to share information with us."

A DNA test brought life-changing news to Summer McKesson. Peete was her biological father. Now she's pushing state officials to create strict rules that would stop such medical wrongdoing.

“I just remember being shocked and my mind just swirling,” she told CNN. “I’m like, how is this possible? … Did my dad have another family or something?”

After finding out in 2018 that she, too, was born from similar misconduct, Eve Wiley now fights for better patient protection laws. While fourteen states have put safeguards in place against such medical wrongdoing, North Carolina still lacks these vital protections.

Since Peete's death in 2013, Kruppa has pressed Duke Health to contact past patients to find other possible offspring. "I think we need the genetics," Kruppa said. "Who knows how many."

This startling case adds to a growing list of similar incidents across America. Wiley continues her work to establish nationwide rules against such medical misconduct.