Emirati woman without ovaries gives birth
17-12-2016 02:25 PM
Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - In a scientific breakthrough, an Emirati woman from Dubai has given birth after her fertility was restored by implanting ovary tissue taken when she was a child, as reported in several British media outlets.
On Wednesday, Mouza Al Matroushi, 24-year-old, gave birth, in the private-run Portland hospital in London. She is thought to be the first in the world to have a baby after having an ovary frozen before the onset of puberty.
The breakthrough gives hope to thousands of women, who are unable to conceive, because their reproductive organs have been damaged by treatment for cancer or other diseases.
“I didn’t stop hoping and now I have a baby, it is a perfect feeling, it is like a miracle. We have been waiting so long for this result – a healthy baby,” Al Matroushi said.
Al Matroushi was born with beta thalassemia, an inherited blood disorder that is lethal if untreated.
Chemotherapy
She underwent chemotherapy, which damages the ovaries. Her right ovary was removed in an operation in Leeds, when she was nine years old. The tissue was frozen and preserved in the hope it would allow her one day to have a family.
The ovarian tissue, which was stored in liquid nitrogen, remained frozen until last year when it was sent to Denmark, where the transplant took place.
Later, Al Matroushi and her husband underwent ‘In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) - to increase the chances of pregnancy.
In vitro fertilization (IVF) is the most common and most effective type of assisted reproductive technology (ART) to help women become pregnant. The procedure involves fertilizing an egg outside the body, in a laboratory dish, and then implanting it in a woman's uterus.
*Al Arabiya