Actual fetal development and what the abortion process details is more nuanced than can be shown in pictures. According to the Mayo Clinic, while the gestational sac may be over an inch long by nine weeks of pregnancy, the fetus is "a little less than 3/4 inch long," which is "the diameter of a U.S. penny."
In terms of development, the Cleveland Clinic explains that between week 5 and week 8 of a pregnancy, a fetus' facial features have started to develop and bone is beginning to replace cartilage. By week 10, a fetus' eyes and ears continue to develop, but aren't visible to the naked eye, unlike the umbilical cord, which should be visible, per Mayo Clinic.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the medications mifepristone and misoprostol for abortions up to 10 weeks along, though many states have banned abortion after six weeks. The Guttmacher Institute reports this type of abortion makes up more than half of those performed in the United States, though the number may be higher following new abortion bans; patients have resorted to using an underground network to secure medication.
Dr. Michele Gomez, a member of the MYA Network, told The Guardian she knows clinicians are probably concerned about a patient's reaction when they're given so much detail about abortions. "But it's not really our right or our responsibility to decide how people will respond to this," she said.
