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Uterus transplant on first US patient fails

On Wednesday, March 9, doctors at the Cleveland Clinic announced that the first woman to receive a transplanted uterus in the United States had the implanted organ removed due to a sudden complication. Although exciting, the transplanted organ showed unspecified complications after the patient had undergone surgery and had to be taken away before injuring the patient.

The 26-year old patient Lindsey, underwent the transplant surgery about a month ago was born without a uterus but it’s eager to getting pregnant after the transplant goes smoothly.

Lindsey, 26, of Texas, with her husband and doctors at a news conference on Monday, underwent the procedure at the Cleveland Clinic. Credit: The New York Times/Dustin Franz

“We are sadden to share that our patient, Lindsey, recently experienced a sudden complication that led to the removal of her transplanted uterus,” said Cleveland Clinic in a statement.

The uterus rejected by Lindsey’s body was received from a deceased donor in her 30s, so doctors are still trying to determine the reason for the complications presented after the transplant. Lindsey’s transplant, although still unsuccessful, was the first of 10 uterine transplants planned as part of a clinical trial taken at the Cleveland Clinic.

Outstandingly, the clinical trial has already screened 250 potential recipients. This study could lead to women who are incapable of having children – whether the reasons involve not having a uterus or due to infertility – the opportunity to have another uterus transplanted, thus, making them able to become mothers. This new medical advancement has already proven successful in Sweden, where five babies have been born since 2014 to mothers with transplanted wombs.

Women who undergo the uterus transplant can be expected to stay in the hospital for up to two months according to the Cleveland Clinic. For patients to live a healthy life following the transplant operation, patient’s daily diet will include immunosuppressant medications in order to keep their bodies from rejecting the transplanted womb.

On a news conference held on Monday, Lindsey said she had been told she could not have a biological child when she was a teenager, at age 16. And although she already has adopted three boys alongside her husband, she wants to carry her own son in her womb and experience the pregnancy.

Fortunately for Lindsey, that day is closer by the second thanks to the exhaustive labor from doctors and researcher teams at Cleveland Clinic in collaboration with doctors from Sweden.

Source: The Washington Post

Categories: Health
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