Mother Delivers Child with Transplanted Womb

The first baby born after its mother had a womb transplant was delivered in September in Sweden. The mid-30s mother delivered a healthy baby boy by caesarean section, roughly two years after she had a uterus implanted that had been donated by a 61-year-old woman.

The baby boy weighed around 1,775 grams and was delivered in the 32^nd week of pregnancy when the mother developed preeclampsia. Mats Brannstrom, professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at University of Gothenburg, said, “The baby screamed right away and has not required any other care than normal clinical observation at the neonatal unit. The mother and child are both doing well and have returned home. The new parents are of course very happy and thankful.”

Nine women have been treated with the procedure; two had to have their transplanted wombs removed. The bulk of the women receiving the uteruses received the uterus from their mothers. After the donated uterus was implanted, the women underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. Once the pregnancies have been completed, the uteruses will be removed.

Brannstrom told Reuters, “There are some more pregnant. They are more than 28 weeks pregnant. When we have the results of other studies, we will know how effective the procedure is and what the risks are.”  He added that hospitals from Europe, the United States, Australia, and China were planning on imitating the procedure if the Swedish results were positive.

Brannstrom said the controversial treatment, which was considered an answer for women who never had a viable womb or had their uterus removed because of cancer, was “a matter of justice.” He concluded, “If we decide as a society that infertility is a type of disease – which we have – we should try to treat it.”

The procedure costs roughly $125,000.  Brannstrom said he believed a transplant was “the only solution to the problem… This is the first type of transplant that is temporary.” The University of Gothenburg has been given leeway to execute 10 womb transplants with up to two full-term pregnancies per woman.