Kirsty Bryant, 30, has become the first woman in Australia to give birth to a baby from a transplanted uterus.
The birth comes 11 months after Bryant’s 53-year-old mother donated her uterus to her daughter following an extensive surgery.
The baby, which was carried in the same uterus as Bryant, was born healthy on 15 December.
Uterus transplant
Bryant had her first child, Violet, in 2021.
However, she suffered from a major haemorrhage after giving birth. She had to have an emergency hysterectomy (surgery to remove a uterus) and was told she wouldn’t be able to carry another child.
Eventually, Bryant learned of a research trial at the Royal Hospital for Women looking into uterus transplantation.
In January this year, Bryant underwent a uterus transplant alongside her mother in a dual surgery that took 16 hours.
This made Bryant the first person in Australia, and among fewer than 100 people across the world, to have a uterus transplanted into her.
Successful birth
Following the transplant, Bryant gave birth by caesarean section at 37 weeks’ gestation.
The transplanted uterus can stay in the body for up to five years, or for the carriage and delivery of two babies.
Associate Professor Rebecca Deans, who led the research trial, said the birth “is the culmination of 25 years of collaborative research and persistence on a global scale so to be able to see a baby born here in Australia is incredible”.
More transplants
After Bryant’s transplant, two more women have received uterus transplants in Australia.
Prue Craven has Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hause (MRKH) Syndrome, which means she was born without a uterus. Craven received a uterus transplant and is currently in the second trimester of her pregnancy.
