7.  The applicants were born in 1977 and 1975 respectively and live in Rome. 8.  Following the birth of their daughter in 2006, the applicants learned that they were healthy carriers of cystic fibrosis[1]. The child had been born with the disease. 9.  In February 2010, when the first applicant was pregnant again, the applicants, who wanted to have a healthy child unaffected by the genetic disease, had a prenatal test carried out. The results showed that the foetus was affected by cystic fibrosis. The applicants then decided to have the pregnancy terminated on medical grounds. 10.  The applicants now want to take advantage of assisted reproduction technology (hereafter “ART”) and preimplantation genetic diagnosis[2] (hereafter “PGD”) before the first applicant becomes pregnant again. However, under Law no. 40 of 19 February 2004, ART is available only to sterile or infertile couples. There is a blanket ban on the use of PGD. 11.  By a decree of 11 April 2008, the Ministry of Health extended access to ART to couples in which the man suffers from a sexually transmissible viral disease (such as the HIV virus, or hepatitis B and C) to allow them to conceive children without the risk of contamination of the woman and/or the fœtus inherent in conception by natural means. 12.  According to the information provided by the Government and the first third-party intervener, this operation is done by “sperm washing” prior to in vitro fertilisation.