A baby boy has been born from a cancer patient's frozen ovarian tissue that was removed 11 years ago and re-implanted in her body after undergoing chemotherapy. This is the first birth of its kind in the United Kingdom.
"It was hard to imagine how well it could work, given that my tissue had been stored for such a long time and I had already had one round of chemotherapy before it was removed. That the re-implanted tissue took so quickly then, came as a really wonderful surprise," The Telegraph quoted the new mother as saying. The 33-year-old mother did not want her name to be revealed.
The first UK birth from ovarian tissue frozen before cancer treatment - my comments in @MailOnline https://t.co/LxUUDQF9Sn remarkable!
— Allan Pacey (@AllanPacey) July 12, 2016
Freezing Ovarian Tissue Started Two Decades Ago
BBC reported that scientists from Edinburgh University freeze the tissue from reproductive organs of boys and girls as young as one year old. These frozen tissues can then be re-implanted in the children when they become adults.
"The storage of ovarian tissue to allow restoration of fertility after cancer treatment in girls and young women was pioneered in Edinburgh over 20 years ago, and it is wonderful to see it come to fruition," Prof. Richard Anderson of Edinburgh University said, as quoted in the report. Anderson added that the procedure gives "real hope" to those who have to undergo treatment that can result to infertility.
Birth From Frozen Ovarian Tissue 'Fantastic'
According to a report from Daily Mail, there are only around 30 women in the world who have given birth after their ovaries were removed, frozen and re-implanted. Most of these were said to be from Scandinavia and the United States. The report said that this particular birth is unique as the woman did not need in vitro fertilization to conceive unlike the majority who had the same procedure.
"This is a fantastic achievement. The whole process of associated reproductive technology is to improve the ability of people that are infertile to have children," said Professor Evelyn Telfer, as quoted in the report. Telfer is a reproductive biologist at Edinburgh University who was part of the team who re-implanted the woman's ovary tissue.
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