Uterine Transplants: A New Frontier in Science
By Shari Rudavsky,
Indy Star
| 12. 17. 2011
Researchers, including some from IU, are studying procedure than could benefit thousands
In the early days of infertility research, scientists -- flush with the promise of transplant medicine -- wondered whether replacing the uterus would help women who were unable to conceive. But less invasive treatments proved feasible, and such research fell by the wayside.
Now, a handful of researchers, including some at the Indiana University School of Medicine, are exploring whether uterine transplants might be able to help women who lack a womb to bear children.
Thousands of women could benefit, but practical and ethical questions remain. When should elective transplants be used? Is a mother's desire to carry her own child reason enough? How might transplant rejection drugs affect a fetus?
The hunger for answers is strong enough that an Indiana University gynecologist convened a conference Dec. 5 at which two dozen people, including international experts in uterine and facial transplants, pondered the next steps.
"This is the first time that I think IU has looked at this seriously," said Dr. Giuseppe Del Priore, Mary Fendrich Hulman Professor of Gynecologic Surgery. "It's encouraging that so many people think it's a...
Related Articles
Since the “CRISPR babies” scandal in 2018, no additional genetically modified babies are known to have been born. Now several techno-enthusiastic billionaires are setting up privately funded companies to genetically edit human embryos, with the explicit intention of creating genetically modified children.
Heritable genome editing remains prohibited by policies in the overwhelming majority of countries that have any relevant policy, and by a binding European treaty. Support for keeping it legally off limits is widespread, including among scientists...
By Ed Cara, Gizmodo | 06.22.2025
In late May, several scientific organizations, including the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy (ISCT), banded together to call for a 10-year moratorium on using CRISPR and related technologies to pursue human heritable germline editing. The declaration also outlined...
By Elise Kinsella, ABC News | 06.15.2025
When *Sarah and her partner needed fertility testing, it was Monash IVF that the pair turned to.
"Having a quick browse online, Monash IVF was one of the most prominent ones that came up on Google search and after contacting...
By Tory Shepherd, The Guardian | 06.13.2025
IVF is “big business” and experts are concerned about conflicts of interest between profit-making and helping families have children.
Monash IVF’s second embryo bungle has sparked renewed scrutiny on the IVF industry as a whole amid calls for national regulation...