web analytics
Operation;WOmb Transplant,uterus,uterine transplant,pregnancy,transplants,donor,women,risks,wombs,babies,research,health,surgery,donors,organ,hysterectomy,surgeons,fetus

Uterus Transplant~A Womb with A Previous View

by Deborah Cruz

 

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]

uterus transplant,Operation;WOmb Transplant,uterus,uterine transplant,pregnancy,transplants,donor,women,risks,wombs,babies,research,health,surgery,donors,organ,hysterectomy,surgeons,fetus

Photo Corbis

Uterus Transplant~A Womb with A Previous View

Scientific research has come a long way baby. In a recent article in Discovery News, we are made aware of the newest advances in modern medicine. We all know that it is possible to transplant a large range of life-saving organs and I am all for that but what are your thoughts on transplanting a uterus? Is it medically imperative or vanity?

Believe me, I can understand the desire and compulsion to procreate and to bear your own child. But a uterine transplant could be potentially dangerous to the donor and the recipient. A uterus transplant would involve a large organ that undergoes extreme changes throughout pregnancy. Is it a feasible option for women who desperately want a pregnancy but don’t have health on their side?

Is a Uterus Transplant~A Womb with A Previous View worth the risks?

In Britain, the theory may soon be tested. A mother, Eva Ottosson,56, says she wishes to give her organ to her daughter,Sara Ottosson,25, who lives with a condition called Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome that causes women to have an underdeveloped or absent vagina and uterus. Sara was born without a uterus. The condition does not usually limit egg production, but makes pregnancy difficult. In theory, successful womb transplants would allow women with these sorts  reproductive hurdles to become pregnant.

The mother and daughter hope to be candidates for the procedure under the direction of a Swedish team of researchers next year, potentially allowing Ottosson’s daughter to carry a baby in the same womb she developed in as a fetus. I find this kind of bizarre. I don’t know if it’s because the uterine transplant would be coming from her mother or the fact that she would be growing her fetus in the uterus she was grown in that skeeves me more. I mean, it should be a beautiful gift from a mother to a daughter, right?

Successfully transplanting a uterus has not been done in human beings yet.Hemorrhaging is a major concern because of the large number of blood vessels involved in attaching the uterus to surrounding tissue of the recipient woman. Scientists have however successfully transplanted wombs in different animal, but there are still many hurdles standing in the way of making the procedure viable in humans.It was tried in 2000, but the donor uterus had to be removed because the recipient’s body stopped providing blood to the new organ after 99 days, hardly long enough to gestate a human fetus. Can you imagine having the uterine transplant, finally getting pregnant only to have the organ start failing three months into the pregnancy.That would be absolutely devastating.

If the recipient’s body views the organ as foreign, it could result in a dangerous immune responses of the body trying to expel the uterus. The organ would need to be seen by the rest of the body as part of the recipient body in order to work properly. Otherwise, the woman who receives the organ might not menstruate normally or their bodies may not allow fertilized eggs to implant on the uterine walls. Leaving a woman who had a small chance of pregnancy to having a zero chance of pregnancy. Even if the transplant works, the recipient would have to take imunosuppressant drugs for the rest of their life. And for now, the entire procedure is a theory. Doctors warn that anyone participating in the trial stages of this procedure should not logically expect to benefit from an actual full term pregnancy until the procedure is perfected. Are the risks worth eliminating all chance?

What do you think? Would you risk an emergency hysterectomy if the body rejects the organ transplant for a small chance that it might work? Or is conceiving and carrying your own baby worth risking everything? Would love to hear your thoughts and know what you would do in this situation.

The Ottosson’s are expected to undergo the transplant in spring 2012. But Sara is being practical, if the transplant is unsuccessful she is planning to adopt.

Uterus Transplant~A Womb with A Previous View

 [/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

You may also like

Leave a Comment

* By using this form you agree with the storage and handling of your data by this website.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

11 comments

Research womb | Shereesvoice 2011/06/16 - 4:36 am

[…] Uterus Transplant,A Womb with A Previous View, Eva Ottosson […]

Reply
A Mommy in the City 2011/06/16 - 8:31 am

I think it’s hard to say because I am not in the situation. But it does sound a little risky to me.

Reply
Truthful Mommy 2011/06/16 - 9:35 am

I agree, hard to say because never been in that situation but I def think its a risky procedure to do presently since its not been perfected yet:( Hope if they do it, it works out in their favor!

Reply
The Mommy Therapy 2011/06/16 - 11:24 am

Things like this are really difficult for me to understand. I never understand going to great lengths, particularly ones that are potentially very harmful, to get pregnant.

But…I got pregnant three times without much effort at all. I was really blessed in that way so it’s tough for me to have perspective on what it would feel like to want to carry your own child but not have the body to cooperate.

I do like to think though that I am more of the school of thought that things that have to be overly forced (like going through dangerous procedures to try to carry a child) aren’t meant to be. I like to think that if I were in the position of not being able to have my child I would explore other options, but it’s tough to say without being in that place.

So interesting. Can’t wait to hear how it turns out…

Reply
Truthful Mommy 2011/06/16 - 11:40 am

I can’t imagine wanting something so badly but not being able to have it on my own. In one of the articles that I read, it said that the daughter is fully ready to adopt if the transplant doesn’t work.At least she is being rational about the entire situation.

Reply
Sarah at The Stroller Ballet 2011/06/16 - 1:52 pm

Wow! I hadn’t heard of this…I agree with Lauren – I find it hard to comment on this because I’m not in the situation. It does sound risky…of course there was a time when heart transplants seemed impossible! I’m interested to see what develops.

Reply
Samantha S 2011/06/16 - 3:03 pm

Wouldn’t it make more sense for the mother to act as a surrogate?

I don’t understand this either. Before we thought about having kids, I’d told my husband that if it didn’t happen mostly naturally before I was 32, I wouldn’t have kids. At the time, after several miscarriages, we had no idea if I’d carry a pregnancy to term or not. I wouldn’t want the lifetime impact of an organ transplant unless I had to.

From a scientific standpoint, it’s fascinating, though.

Reply
Tam 2011/06/17 - 2:17 am

Having never been in that situation, I cannot judge. But, I will say that the lengths I will go to to nurture and protect my children are limitless. So perhaps, if I was in her sad situation, the lengths I would go to have my own children would be the same.

I wish her luck, and healthy children.

Reply
Truthful Mommy 2011/06/18 - 7:40 pm

Me,too. I don;t know how I would react in her situation either. My only concern is that perhaps she should wait since the procedure is not perfected yet. It would be sad if she has the procedure too soon and it doesn’t take:(

Reply
thomas lundmark 2011/06/17 - 12:31 pm

It might interest you 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, authoritative biography “The Untold Story of Eva Braun: Her Life beyond Hitler.”

Reply
luz 2011/07/12 - 12:13 pm

How ready are these doctors? If you look at the history of the uterine transplant in 2007 the WORLD heard about a New York doctor and his hospital in Mahattan. They were just about ready.
Then 2 years later a group from Britain.
Have all these doctors done the appropriate research to claim this topic a REALITY?
I found a youtube video to be very convensing. Youtube.com uterinetransplant also an article in the Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology March 2011. That is scientific and more real.
As a professional I think, the media was very naive.

Reply

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More