The first baby has been born following a womb transplant, the Telegraph had learned
The world’s first birth from a transplanted womb has been announced.
Details of the boy’s birth were being closely guarded, but it was believed that it took place in Sweden where surgeons have performed pioneering surgery.
The baby was delivered by caesarean section in the 31st week of pregnancy. He weighed 3.9 pounds — normal for that stage of pregnancy.
British experts said last night that they were preparing to carry out a similar procedure next year. It could help 14,000 British women carry their own child.
It is thought the birth took place within the last month after doctors transplanted wombs into several women who had a rare genetic condition that meant they were born without their own womb.
In January, one of the patients underwent IVF treatment that resulted in an embryo being transferred to her new womb. The donated womb came from a family friend.
The woman is a patient of Dr Mats Brannstrom, professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at the Sahlgrenska Academy in Gothenburg.
Mother and child are now at home and well. The identities of the woman and her male partner were not disclosed. “The baby is fantastic,” said Dr Brannstrom, who led the research and delivered the baby with the help of his wife, a midwife.
“But it is even better to see the joy in the parents and how happy he made them.”
Richard Smith, a consultant gynaecological surgeon at Queen Charlotte’s Hospital in London, said he was preparing to do similar operations here next year funded by the charity Womb Transplant UK.
He said: “This is unbelievably exciting, its brilliant. We are submitting applications for ethics approval in the next few weeks with a view to doing human live transplants in the UK next year.
“We have moved from an atmosphere where people were really quite against this procedure to where people are quite supportive. We have 60 patients on the waiting list for this procedure.”
After the caesarean section, the womb would be left in place until the mother has completed her family and then removed so that drugs to stop the body rejecting the organ could be halted. The drugs carry an increased risk of cancer. The operation, follow-up and immunosuppressant drugs cost £100,000.
The only other options for women born without a womb were adoption or surrogacy if she wanted to have a child genetically related to her, but this is legally complicated.
The first womb transplant was done in Saudi Arabia in 2000 but failed shortly afterwards.
In 2011 Derya Sert, 21, received a womb from a dead donor in Turkey. She conceived a child but no heartbeat was detected and it was later terminated.
In 2012 it was announced by Dr Brannstrom that nine womb transplants had been carried out and all were successful.
Eight of the recipients suffer from MRKH syndrome, a congenital disorder which affects one in 5,000 women and prevents the womb from developing.
The ninth had her womb removed after suffering cervical cancer.
The only other options for women born without a womb is adoption or surrogacy if she wants to have a child genetically related to her but this is legally complicated in the UK.
Prof Sheena Lewis, Professor of Reproductive Medicine at Queens University Belfast and Chair of British Andrology Society said: "This is another step forward in the treatment of infertile women.
"The questions we have asked in the past about such a study have been: are the donors fully informed of the risks of such an operation. If so, and they agree, that seems acceptable.
"The other question is whether the transplanted womb is adequate in providing the optimal environment for the growing foetus. We will watch the progress of this baby with Interest and hope."
Rebecca Smith - telegraph.co.uk
