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UK’s First Womb Transplant Baby: A Dream Realised for North London Couple
For the world, it marks a groundbreaking medical achievement; for Grace and Angus Davidson, the arrival of their daughter signifies something far more profound – the realisation of their aspiration to become a conventional family. Amy Isabel, now five weeks old, is the first infant born in the UK following a uterus transplant, a momentous event for the North London couple who describe it as fulfilling their lifelong dream of parenthood.
Tears of Joy and Relief
The couple exchange joyful glances. Grace, cradling Amy in her arms, gently caresses her daughter’s delicate red hair. Her eyes are fixated on Amy, as if still processing the reality of her presence. Tears of emotion frequently well up, reflecting the arduous journey they have undertaken.
Reaching this milestone demanded exceptional resilience and resolve from Grace, involving years of invasive examinations, profound disappointments, and frustrating delays – all endured without any certainty of a positive conclusion.
Diagnosis and Determination
At just 19, Grace received the devastating diagnosis that she was born without a uterus – news that felt like a bereavement.
‘I felt inadequate, fundamentally flawed,’ Grace, now 36, recounts. ‘Even at a young age, I felt motherhood was inherent to my being; an experience I instinctively yearned for.’
After dedicating 17 years to pursuing this aspiration – culminating in Grace becoming the recipient of the UK’s first transplanted womb – she was so apprehensive about potential complications that she consciously avoided envisioning the moment of finally holding her child.
The night before her scheduled caesarean section, the magnitude of her two-decade-long journey overwhelmed Grace, causing uncontrollable tremors.
‘I contacted one of the doctors, who initially worried it might be a medical issue, but I recognised it as pure adrenaline,’ Grace explains. ‘A wave of suppressed emotions surged – I had become adept at suppressing difficult feelings over the years.’
Early Arrival and Expert Care
Amy’s birth on February 27 occurred three weeks prematurely when Grace’s cervix began to shorten – a possible indicator of impending labour. Her medical team, exercising caution, opted for a pre-emptive caesarean delivery to minimise stress on the transplanted uterus before natural labour commenced.
A large team of 20 medical professionals, including doctors, nurses, and surgeons – twice the usual number for a standard caesarean – were present during the delivery to manage potential complications. The primary concern was the risk of haemorrhaging from the blood vessels meticulously connected during the intricate nine-hour transplant procedure in 2023.
Grace and Angus, a 37-year-old finance professional, felt apprehensive about their reactions in front of such an extensive medical team as Amy made her entrance.
Their fears were unfounded; even the surgeons completing the post-delivery procedures were visibly moved, shedding tears of joy.
A Sister’s Selfless Gift
As Angus stepped away to share the news of Amy’s arrival, his first call was to Grace’s sister, Amy.
It was Amy, 42, a mother of two – and the newborn’s namesake – who had selflessly donated her womb, making this groundbreaking birth a reality.
‘I was even more overcome than I had anticipated,’ Amy admits, recalling the moment Angus called from the hospital.
Despite her aversion to hospitals, needles, and blood, Amy underwent extensive tests and eight hours of surgery to donate her uterus for the transplant.
‘It was, and will always be, the most selfless act I have ever witnessed,’ Angus affirms.
Family Support and Shared Dream
As they recount their story, Grace is flanked by Angus and her sister, while baby Amy rests peacefully in her mother’s lap. The profound impact of familial support on this medical triumph becomes readily apparent – a family united in their commitment to support one another.
Grace’s journey began following investigations into absent menstruation, leading to a diagnosis of Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome. This rare condition, affecting approximately 15,000 women in the UK, results in an underdeveloped or absent uterus, while the ovaries remain healthy.
‘It felt like experiencing a profound loss’, Grace reflects. She confided in only her parents and three siblings (another older sister and a brother) about her condition, initially.
‘The emotional pain was so intense that I avoided discussing it with others. I wanted to avoid becoming distressed.’
Amy, Grace’s sister, who resides in Scotland where the family originates, recalls: ‘Witnessing Grace’s suffering was incredibly difficult. We offered any support possible – even surrogacy.’
Love and Commitment
Shortly after her diagnosis, then 19, Grace met Angus, a 20-year-old mathematics student, while interviewing him for a part-time job at the pub where she worked to finance her dietetics studies. Their relationship quickly deepened, and Grace felt compelled to disclose her condition to Angus, uncertain of his reaction.
‘My deep desire for a family made me feel as though I might be depriving someone else of that opportunity,’ Grace reveals. ‘I felt my lack of a womb diminished my worth in a relationship.’
Angus recalls ‘feeling immense sadness for Grace,’ but her news did not alter his feelings. ‘I knew very early on that I wanted to marry her,’ he states.
Milestones and Challenges
Weeks before Grace and Angus’s wedding in 2014, Amy discovered she was pregnant with her first child during Grace’s hen party. (Amy and her husband now have two daughters, aged seven and nine). Tears well up as she remembers, ‘Discovering my pregnancy was one of the happiest moments of my life, but sharing the news with Grace was incredibly difficult.’
Grace remained resolute that she and Angus would ‘discover a path to parenthood, by any means necessary’.
‘Angus was open to surrogacy, but I found the concept emotionally challenging,’ Grace explains. ‘The thought of another woman carrying my baby was difficult – I desired the shared experience of pregnancy and birth as a couple. We wanted to have a baby together and experience that normalcy.’
During her diagnosis, Grace had learned about womb transplantation as a potential future option, ‘but it seemed like a distant prospect,’ she recalls.
However, in 2014, news of a Swedish woman becoming the first worldwide to give birth after a living donor uterus transplant reignited hope. Grace contacted researchers initiating a UK womb transplant programme to register her interest.
She was overjoyed to be accepted onto the waiting list for a deceased donor womb in 2015.
Live Donation and Setbacks
After three years with no progress due to regulatory processes, the Womb Transplant UK charity team shifted their approach to living donors. Grace’s mother offered to donate her womb. Despite Grace’s reservations about involving her family in potential harm, surgery was scheduled, and Grace and Angus underwent IVF, creating seven embryos. The operation was cancelled when vascular issues were detected in the donated womb, which was devastating for Grace’s mother.
Grace’s other sister then volunteered, but Amy, without hesitation, felt the responsibility was hers.
‘As a woman and a mother, I understood what Grace was missing,’ Amy explains. ‘However, broaching the subject of donating my womb with my husband was a delicate matter.’
It took time for him to accept the idea. ‘We had recently welcomed our second child, so his priority was protecting our family,’ Amy says.
Eventually, he agreed, and despite her fear of needles, Amy underwent numerous tests to confirm her womb’s suitability.
The process faced further delays with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The sisters kept their transplant journey largely private for five years, ‘to avoid premature pressure or questions,’ Grace explains. ‘It was a significant phase of our lives, lived in relative secrecy.’
Transplant and Recovery
Following the lifting of COVID-19 lockdowns, plans resumed, and the transplant was scheduled for February 12, 2023, in Oxford. The family gathered in the city; an anxiously awaited day for everyone, especially Amy and Grace’s parents. Angus describes it as ‘the most stressful day of [his] life.’ Potential risks included infection, bleeding, and organ damage.
Amy underwent surgery first, and Grace endured three hours of worry. ‘When I was finally taken to the operating room, I wasn’t so much nervous as overwhelmed. I remember thinking, ‘Oh God, oh God,’’ Grace recounts.
The womb removal and transplant operations lasted an astounding 17 hours in total. Amy vividly remembers the immense relief and joy on her husband’s face when she regained consciousness.
‘I have never witnessed such relief on my husband’s face before,’ she says. ‘Not even when our children were born.’
Grace emerged around 4 am, eager to reassure Angus. “I kept saying, ‘I’m fine,’ but he replied, ‘You don’t look fine.’ My face was severely swollen from the prolonged surgery and body positioning.”
Both sisters faced painful recoveries. Grace experienced fluid leakage from the surgical site, while Amy endured nausea and hallucinations from strong painkillers during her first week.
‘That’s when anxiety set in, realising I was a mother and had left my children at home,’ Amy says. Upon returning home after a week in hospital, her children – unaware of the surgery – were shocked by her condition.
‘They had never seen me unwell; their reaction was unexpectedly traumatic,’ she recalls. ‘I’m thankful I didn’t fully anticipate how difficult the recovery would be. I faced it without fear.’
A Sign of Success and Pregnancy
Two weeks post-surgery, positive signs emerged.
‘I discovered I was having my first-ever period and called Amy from the bathroom floor, crying tears of joy,’ Grace shares. ‘It felt incredibly significant. Finally, I felt complete.’
A year of healing was needed before the next crucial step – embryo implantation (natural conception was not possible due to fallopian tube removal during the transplant).
However, this was delayed due to Grace contracting cytomegalovirus, a common infection (transmitted from Amy via the womb), posing risks during pregnancy. Medication was necessary to resolve the infection.
‘I was starting to struggle by then, longing to finally progress to having a baby after all these years.’
The couple finally received clearance for embryo implantation in June last year. They faced an anxious ten-day wait for the pregnancy test.
‘I woke up at 5 am to Grace at the bed’s edge, clutching the pregnancy test, asking me to check the result,’ Angus recalls. ‘I said, ‘Pregnant,’ and we both just broke down in tears.’
‘Nothing about this journey had been typical, and to share a positive pregnancy test in bed like any other couple felt incredible,’ Grace says.
Angus becomes emotional recalling returning from work that day ‘with such elation.’ ‘I felt an overwhelming urge to announce to everyone, ‘I’m going to be a dad!’’
Sharing Joy and Anticipation
Grace travelled to Scotland to share the news in person with Amy and her family. ‘As I shared the news, Amy would cry, then I would continue, and I would cry,’ she recalls. ‘It was profoundly emotional.’
Close pregnancy monitoring followed, with bi-weekly scans to detect signs of premature labour, which Grace wouldn’t feel due to the womb lacking nerve connections.
Grace felt relieved to feel the first fetal movement at 20 weeks, as early pregnancy had been ‘nerve-wracking.’ ‘I was surprised by my anxiety,’ she admits. ‘After the embryo transfer, even bike rides over bumps made me worry about dislodging the baby.’
‘I was becoming deeply invested in this baby, developing maternal feelings, and I worried about coping if something went wrong.’
At the 21-week scan, they learned they were expecting a girl. ‘We had always said we would name a daughter Amy, and we chose Isabel to honour the medical team [specifically surgeon Isabel Quiroga],’ Grace explains.
Only after 26 weeks did the couple feel comfortable enough to buy baby clothes and decorate the nursery. Amy even assisted with assembling the cot.
Grace spent the final trimester ‘bonding with [her] daughter, singing and familiarising her with our voices.’ ‘I cherished every moment, savouring experiences I once thought impossible,’ she reflects.
Delivery and Homecoming
Grace was hospitalised for the final week of pregnancy before delivery at Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital in London.
The caesarean delivery took slightly longer – 90 minutes instead of the typical 30 – due to unexpected large blood vessels encountered during the procedure. But, finally, baby Amy was placed into a tearful Grace’s arms.
‘I could scarcely believe we had finally reached this point,’ she says.
Grace treasured the skin-to-skin contact with her daughter. Though exhausted but overjoyed, she was able to breastfeed that night.
Eight days later, Grace, baby Amy, and Angus returned home as a family.
Normal Family Life
Reflecting on their journey, Grace says: ‘I wondered if motherhood might be underwhelming and anticipated postpartum blues, but it has been utterly wonderful. And it’s surprising how manageable life is on just two to three hours of sleep.’
Grace and Angus are certain about wanting to try for a sibling for Amy ‘as soon as possible’ – although they will limit their family to two children. The transplanted womb must be removed within five years due to the long-term immunosuppressant medication Grace requires, which increases risks of infection and cancer.
Their conversation concludes as baby Amy stretches, eliciting delighted coos from Mum, Dad, and Aunt Amy.
This is the “normal” family life Grace and Angus yearned for, now joyfully embracing everyday family moments.