First Successful Uterine Transplant Patient 'Prayed to God' for Pregnancy; Adopted 3 Children With Husband
The first U.S. woman to successfully receive a uterine transplant says she "prayed to God" that she would be able to experience the gift of pregnancy.
The Texas woman, who has identified herself only as "Lindsey" to the media, underwent surgery for a uterine transplant on February 24 at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.
The 26-year-old said at a press conference this week that before the successful nine-hour surgery, she had prayed to God that she may be able to experience pregnancy.
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"I have prayed that God would allow me the opportunity to experience pregnancy, and here we are at the beginning of that journey," she said during the press conference, held Monday in Cleveland, Ohio.
Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic have maintained that although Lindsey receive a successful surgery, she will still need to wait at least a year before attempting to conceive.
"Uterus transplant is not just about a surgery and moving a uterus from here to there. It's about having a healthy baby and that goal is still a couple of years away," said Rebecca Flyckt, an obstetrics and gynecology surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic.
Lindsey added at the press conference that she is "so thankful" for the team of medical professionals at Cleveland Clinic who have given her the opportunity to have a biological child.
"I am so thankful to this amazing team of doctors and all the nurses and staff who have worked around the clock to ensure my safety," the patient said.
Lindsey and her husband, Blake, already share three adopted children together, but have expressed their desire to have a child of their own.
Dr. Andreas G. Tzakis, director of solid organ transplantation at the Cleveland Clinic's Florida branch, told the New York Times that he saw it as an "act of God" when Lindsey received an almost-immediate match for a uterus donation back in February.
"I was shocked," Dr. Tzakis said, adding "I really considered it an act of God."
According to Scientific American, Lindsey was told at the age of 16 that she would never be able to conceive because she is one of 5,000 women in the world born without a uterus.
Ruth Farrell, one of Lindsey's medical team members, said that carrying out the transplant was an ethical decision because Lindsey's lack of the reproductive organ affected her quality of life.
"This is not a life-threatening condition, but it's a life-altering condition, and having children and families is one of the fundamental aspects that defines us as individuals, as families [and] as members of society," Farrell said.
In explaining the details of the surgery and recovery period, Dr. Tommaso Falcone, chairman of the Cleveland Clinic's transplant center, said that after Lindsey spends another one to two months in the hospital, as well as a full year of recovery, doctors will begin the process of placing one of her fertilized eggs into her uterus so she may become pregnant.
Lindsey cannot become pregnant naturally, Falcone explained, because she does not have fallopian tubes to carry the egg from the ovaries to the uterus.
