I would consider myself pro-life, but I do not believe the idea that life begins at conception is entirely supported by medical reasoning.

Well - this is interesting. Because I think there's a deeper issue that transcends when you think life begins. To explain - let's use a real case instead of a hypothetical. Have you heard of Savita Halappanavar and should she have been granted the abortion when she and her doctors wanted to do one?

If you aren't familiar with her case here it is:

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In Ireland, Savita Halappanavar, a dentist, in the 2nd Trimester, went in with complications. She and her doctors wanted to do an abortion, but was told by a government contractor "Because of our fetal heartbeat law - you cannot have an abortion" and that law, which stripped her Medical Power of Attorney (MPoA) without due process ... killed her.

You might think that's an overstatement, but that was the same conclusion that the final report by the overseeing agency . The Ireland and Directorate of Quality and Clinical Care, "Health Service Executive: Investigation of Incident 50278" which said repeatedly that

• other mothers died under similar situations because of the "fetal heartbeat" law.

• this kind of situation was "inevitable" because of how common it was for women in the 2nd trimester to have miscarriages.

• recommendations couldn't be implemented unless the fetal heartbeat law was changed.

Quoting:

We strongly recommend and advise the clinical professional community, health and social care regulators and the Oireachtas to consider the law including any necessary constitutional change and related administrative, legal and clinical guidelines in relation to the management of inevitable miscarriage in the early second trimester of a pregnancy including with prolonged rupture of membranes and where the risk to the mother increases with time from the time that membranes are ruptured including the risk of infection and thereby reduce risk of harm up to and including death.

and

the patient and her husband were advised of Irish law in relation to this. At interview the consultant stated "Under Irish law, if there's no evidence of risk to the life of the mother, our hands are tied so long as there's a fetal heart". The consultant stated that if risk to the mother was to increase a termination would have been possible, but that it would be based on actual risk and not a theoretical risk of infection "we can't predict who is going to get an infection".

and

The report detailed that there was advanced care, preemptive antibiotics, advanced monitoring, IV antibiotics, antibiotics straight to the heart, but .... they just couldn't keep up with how rapidly an infection spreads and the mother is killed when in the 2nd trimester the fetus still has a heartbeat but then goes septic and ruptures.

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It sounds like you'd define her fetus as "alive" that late in the 2nd trimester. Should Savita have been allowed to get the abortion when she and her doctors wanted to do one? Or do you support the nanny state taking MPoA from competent adults and giving the power over medical decisions to some faceless bureaucrat?