NATIONAL NEWS

UK’s first womb transplant

The UK’s first womb transplant was performed this week, heralding the birth of hope and the hope of birth for women who previously had no viable options.

The 34-year-old married woman received the organ – also called the uterus – during an operation lasting nine hours and 20 minutes at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford, which is part of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Her sister, 40, has completed her own family by giving birth to two children, and was willing to donate her womb. The recipient, who lives in England and does not wish to be named, has stored embryos with the aim of undergoing IVF later this year.