A mother has given birth to her son’s twin brother ten long years after he was born.
The woman from China, known as Ms. Wang, has given birth to a baby boy from an embryo that has been frozen for a decade, making the little one the twin brother to her 10-year-old brother who had also been conceived in the same round of IVF.
Ms. Wang, who had been struggling to conceive a child ten years ago, tried out IVF treatment and medics cultivated a ‘batch of embryos,’ the Hubei Maternal and Child Health Hospital said.
One of the embryos was implanted into Ms. Wang, who gave birth to her first child named Lu Lu. Other embryos were frozen so the mother could go through the same process again – ten years after she gave birth to her son.
Now 41, Ms. Wang gave birth via c-section, with medics saying baby Tong Tong weighed 7.7lbs (3.48kg) at birth.
“Often with in vitro fertilisation (IVF) or Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) treatment, there may be good quality embryos left over after embryo transfer. Instead of discarding them, there is the option to freeze them to use in the future (in case treatment doesn’t work for example, or to try for a sibling),” the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority explained.
“Embryos can also be frozen to preserve fertility so it may be possible to have a baby at a later date.”
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority added: “The standard storage period for embryos is normally 10 years, although women in certain circumstances can store their embryos for up to 55 years.”
A doctor from the fertility center, Zheng Jie, said: “From a medical perspective, Lu Lu and Tong Tong are twin brothers.”
Ms. Wang came back to Xiao Mei, the obstetrics chief who had assisted her with her first pregnancy. She said: “Almost 10 years later, when I found Director Xiao Mei, she recognized me at once.”
The doctors said that despite her age, the pregnancy was very ‘smooth.’
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Replaced!