Baby girl makes history as first child in UK to be born from womb transplant

7 April 2025, 21:52 | Updated: 8 April 2025, 00:36

A baby girl has made history as the first child in the UK to be born from a womb transplant.

Grace Davidson, 36, from north London, who received the organ from her older sister, Amy, in the UK's first womb transplant in 2023, gave birth in February to her daughter, named Amy Isabel after her aunt and a surgeon who helped perfect the technique.

Experts have hailed the birth following the success of the transplant as a "huge milestone" and a "miracle" for the family.

'Miracle'

Stuart Lavery, consultant in reproductive medicine at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH), said: "This amazing event represents both a personal miracle for the couple involved but also a vindication for the team of surgeons and scientists who have for so many years worked tirelessly to get to this place.

"Like so many milestones in UK reproductive medicine, it takes a combination of a courageous patient and a committed and supportive medical team to push the scientific boundaries in the hope of helping more couples have the families they desire."

'Huge milestone'

Professor Alison Campbell, chief scientific officer at Care Fertility, said: "It's truly incredible how science is making more families possible and to see this progress in reproductive medicine.

"The success of uterine transplantation is a huge milestone for people who believed it was impossible to carry a child.

"This news gives hope and promises to further expand reproductive freedom."

Dr Melanie Davies, professor of reproductive medicine and consultant gynaecologist at University College London Hospitals, said: "The first UK birth after womb transplantation is a fantastic achievement.

"It is wonderful for the couple concerned, especially Grace, who never thought she could carry a child. Congratulations!

"And it must be immensely satisfying for the team of doctors and scientists to see this outcome.

"In particular, congratulations go to Prof Richard Smith, who has held this vision for 25 years and had to overcome many hurdles on the way, not least raising the funds for the programme.

"It required skills from many specialities: gynaecology, pelvic surgery, organ transplantation, IVF and maternal medicine. It is an exemplar of teamwork and dedication."

She said the birth of Amy Isabel gives hope to other women who have been born without a womb and may also help young women who have needed a hysterectomy.

"The only alternative for these women is surrogacy, which is not easy to access and not always acceptable," she said.

"Womb transplantation remains a challenging process, involving major surgery for the recipient, who will go through IVF before the procedure, and afterwards needs immunosuppressive drugs to avoid tissue rejection.

"The transplanted womb will need to be removed once her family is complete.

"The ethical aspects are thoughtfully considered, including the risk to the living donor, who also undergoes major pelvic surgery.

"This is not a world first, there have been a small number of successful births in other countries, notably in Sweden.

"But for the very first patient having a womb transplant in the UK to give birth so soon afterwards demonstrates the care that has been taken in preparing for this well-deserved success."

Experts believe a maximum of 20 to 30 womb transplants per year could be carried out in the UK in the future.

Transplants could help women born without a functioning womb, also known as a uterus, and those who lose their organ to cancer or other medical conditions.

Estimates suggest there are 15,000 women in the UK of childbearing age who do not have a functioning womb.

To be eligible for the programme, women must live in the UK and be aged 24 to 40 (or 42 if embryos are frozen before the age of 38).