Cleveland Uterine Transplants
An Impossible Possible Situation is a when a situation that people once thought could not be accomplished happens. This situation changes the future as it inspires others to break the limits that we impose on each other and on ourselves.
My example of an impossible possible situation that occurred is one that just occurred in the summer of 2019, when the first woman in North America gave birth with a uterus transplant in Cleveland. People are familiar with typical organ transplants such as a kidney, liver or even a heart transplant, but uterine transplant has been and still is a rapidly evolving field.
Cleveland State University embarked on a ground-breaking research trial, testing the feasibility of a successful pregnancy and deliver following a uterine transplant. The trial involved 10 women with uterine factor infertility (UFI), which diagnoses women who do not have a uterus or had it removed, and transplanted wombs from deceased donors. A uterine transplant surgery is a very complex procedure that requires suppression of her immune system response. So far, three out of the first five transplants were successful, including the miracle birth of the baby girl in Cleveland.
This is an important milestone as UFI is an irreversible form of female infertility and the only option for those affected currently is surrogacy, a legally complicated process and in many countries, highly restricted or outright banned. Previously, two international attempts at uterine transplant surgery in the early 2000s were unsuccessful and overcoming organ rejection seemed impossible. As 1 in every 5000 women are born with UFI – and many must remove their uterus due to health risk reasons such as traumatic birth complications, hemorrhage or fibroids – this successful trial is the foundation to this transplant as a fertility treatment option.
This example resonated with me because I believe that reproduction is one of the important characteristics of life. As the childbirth experience is a significant event of great psychological importance, and as a woman myself, I am heartbroken to hear that some cannot experience this because of physical limitations. Knowing people in my own life that are affected by this and hearing many stories of people who are, this trial is ground-breaking news that brings us hope for the future. The birth from the trials proves that what science said would be impossible are just limits that people have imposed that one can choose not to be subject to, making the impossible possible.
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