Woman hopes to have child using womb donated by own mother

Eva Ottosson hopes her uterus can be transplanted into her daughter

/ BBC

(CBS) Can a woman born without a womb give birth to a child?

That's something Sara Ottosson intends to find out. The 25-year-old - who lacks reproductive organs as the result of a rare hereditary disorder - will have her mother's uterus implanted into her own body next spring. Then her eggs will be fertilized by her boyfriend's sperm and implanted into the transplanted uterus, the Telegraph reported.

At least that's the plan. If the pioneering procedure comes to fruition, Ottosson - who lives in Sweden - would become the first woman to give birth to a child using the same womb in which she was carried.

Isn't that a little creepy?

Speaking of her mother's uterus,"I'm a biology teacher, and it's just an organ like any other organ," Ottosson told the paper. "But my mum did ask me about this. She said 'isn't it weird?' And my answer is no. I'm more worried that my mum is going to have a big operation."

What does Ottosson's mother think? "My daughter and I are both very rational people, and we both think 'it's just a womb,'" 56-year-old Eva Ottosson said. "She needs it more than me. I've had two daughters so it's served me well."

Sara, who found out she lacks a uterus when she failed to start menstruating as a teenager, suffers from Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Houser syndrome. The "psychologically devastating" disorder, whose cause is unknown, affects about one in 4,000 to 5,000 females, according to Medscape.

This would be the first time a mother's uterus was transplanted into her own daughter - and only the second uterus transplant ever, according to the Telegraph. The first took place in Saudi Arabia in 2000, but the 26-year-old recipient of that womb had to have it removed after problems arose.

The sugery is among the most complicated medical procedures there is, according to the doctor who heads the team that hopes to perform the transplant.

"Technically, it is lot more difficult than transplanting a kidney, liver or heart," Dr. Mats Brannstrom told the paper. "The difficulty with it is avoiding hemorrhage and making sure you have long enough blood vessels to connect the womb."

Eva Ottosson said she hoped the procedure would help not only her daughter but also other women who suffer from MRKH syndrome.

And Sara? "At the moment I am trying not to get my hopes up so that I am not disappointed," she told the paper.

If things don't work out, she will adopt.

[Eva_Braun_Author]

I thought you might be interested to know that Eva Braun also suffered from MRKH syndrome, as I am sure a lot of other prominent women did and do. More on Eva Braun can be found in my new biography "The Untold Story of Eva Braun." Thomas Lundmark

[rf35]

Y'all have pretty much said all that needs saying...stupid, risky, and above all UNNECESSARY!


@ howbizarre, yes, breast augmentation is foolish. And Lasik is in such a different league as far as "surgery" it's not a valid comaprison.

[ksmit2]

The idea of having children is perfectly normal and healthy for
men and women wanting to be parents, and have a family. When you
have thousands of kids who need a mom and dad, it is unfortunate
that they are subordinated to an individual's disire to have a
child of their own flesh and blood. So, I don't know that "having
children" is the main issue here. Issues like this threaten to
re-direct genuine, successful advances in surgery into a medical
"make a wish" pool. Especially in the face of thousands who are
on waiting lists for life saving transplants who sometimes die before getting an organ. One last consideration, it appears that
the women involved are taking all the risk, while would be "dad"
is happy to remain a "boyfriend" with no apparent commitment beyond
that. Good luck ladies.

[ksmit2]

The idea of having children is perfectly normal and healthy for
men and women wanting to be parents, and have a family. When you
have thousands of kids who need a mom and dad, it is unfortunate
that they are subordinated to an individual's disire to have a
child of their own flesh and blood. So, I don't know that "having
children" is the main issue here. Issues like this threaten to
re-direct genuine, successful advances in surgery into a medical
"make a wish" pool. Especially in the face of thousands who are
on waiting lists for life saving transplants who sometimes die before getting an organ. One last consideration, it appears that
the women involved are taking all the risk, while would be "dad"
is happy to remain a "boyfriend" with no apparent commitment beyond
that. Good luck ladies.

[erasmus111]

Instead of transplanting her uterus into her daughter, why doesn't mommy carry it for her?? There was another woman that did that for her daughter, awhile back.

Now, if the daughter receives that transplant, she will have to take MANY pills to keep her body from rejecting it. I can't imagine that will be good for the baby.

[all4science]

Exactly; I've the same thoughts when i read this. Why not just carry the child for your daughter instead of risking everyone's life?

[Valhalla0907]

I would rather see male birth control and population reduction as a focus of science. These "litters" and fertility experiments have gone too far. Unless the species is threatened, we don't need this!

[dragon0058]

Unless any of you people are mothers yourself you can't possibly understand the bond that comes from carrying a child of your own flesh and blood. This woman obviously cares about that bond and so does her mother or they wouldn't take the risk and it is their risk to take so what business is it of yours. People like all of you need to SHUT THE HE** UP and not be so judgemental of something you can NEVER understand!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[senca67]

How about all the crap the husband has to got through, that doesn't count?

[RogerInHawaii]

This is an absurdly risky procedure to all involved. All so she can give birth? Shouldn't the object be to RAISE a child? Is giving birth really all that important? If having a family is so incredibly important to her (which is admirable), then she should ADOPT a child.

I also have to wonder about the wisdom and ethics of any doctor who would agree to perform this procedure. It's just as crazy as the doctor who implanted multiple embryos in the "octu-mom", resulting in a very dangerous 8-fetus pregnancy. He had his license revoked. The same should happen to this doctor.

[credibility2]

There are those who are against abortion because it interferes with the Will of God. These same types should also be vehemently opposed to this and any other artificial method of procreation, because the procedures also interfere with the Will of God.

[GottaLuvItt]

Agreed superdem1