9 women who previously had been unable to conceive are now cleared for TTC thanks to a cutting-edge procedure they received in Sweden: each of these women underwent womb transplants . . . that’s right, womb transplants. Reproductive organs donated by relatives were transferred into these women in the first successful surgery of this nature. Before the surgery, the 9 women who participated in this groundbreaking medical initiative did not have wombs due to either congenital disorders or organ removal due to cervical cancer. Now, thanks to this procedure, each transplant recipient (all women in their 30s) may have the ability to give birth her own child. Because the fallopian tubes were not connected to the uterus during surgery, the patients will undergo IVF in an attempt to get pregnant.
Previous attempts at this surgery have failed to produce a baby, but the Swedish research and technology used for this operation are thought to be the most advanced.
The transplant recipients are doing well following the surgeries, and several have had their periods at approximately six weeks following the operation, a hopeful early sign that the transplant was successful and an indication that the transplanted wombs are healthy and functioning.
Sweden’s technique of using live organ donors, primarily mothers or other female relatives of the recipients, has been controversial in part because the surgery is both complicated and radical. To ensure adequate blood flow, a large chunk of surrounding blood vessels must be taken from the donor and that presents a serious risk. Some surgeons feel that this risk isn’t worth it for an operation that isn’t a matter of life and death.
What do you think?
