UK Mom Has Baby After Groundbreaking Womb Transplant

Grace Bell never imagined she'd hold her own baby, but last December she did exactly that after making medical history in the UK.

Born without a womb, Grace became the first British woman to give birth following a womb transplant from a deceased donor. She and her partner Steve welcomed baby boy Hugo in December 2025 at Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital in London, and both are thriving.

The transplant happened through a groundbreaking research program that requires special family consent beyond standard organ donation. When the donor's family learned about the possibility, they said yes to giving Grace a chance at motherhood.

"Their kindness and selflessness to a complete stranger is the reason I've been able to fulfill my lifelong dream of being a mum," Grace said. The donor's parents expressed tremendous pride in their daughter's legacy, saying she gave other families "the precious gift of time, hope, healing and now life."

The journey took careful coordination. After the seven-hour transplant surgery, Grace underwent IVF treatment at the Lister Fertility Clinic. Medical teams at Oxford University Hospitals and Queen Charlotte's monitored her closely throughout pregnancy until Hugo's birth by caesarean section.

Grace and Steve chose Hugo's middle name, Richard, to honor Professor Richard Smith, who founded the transplant program after 25 years of pioneering research. Just 10 months earlier, another UK woman named Grace Davidson gave birth after receiving a womb from her sister Amy, marking the country's first successful live donor womb transplant.

The Ripple Effect

One in 5,000 women in the UK are born without a viable womb, and many others lose theirs to cancer or medical conditions. This breakthrough opens doors for thousands who thought biological motherhood was impossible.

The program combines expertise from Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, Oxford University Hospitals, NHS Blood and Transplant, and the charity Womb Transplant UK. The charity funds each £30,000 transplant and associated treatments, while clinical teams donate their time, ensuring no financial burden on the NHS.

Worldwide, over 100 womb transplants have resulted in more than 70 healthy babies. The UK program plans for 10 deceased donor transplants and five living donor transplants, with each case carefully reviewed for approval.

The research has already led to other surgical advances, including procedures that preserve fertility for women with early-stage cervical cancer. What started as one family's dream of parenthood is now changing reproductive medicine for generations to come.

Hugo is believed to be just the third baby born in Europe following a deceased donor womb transplant, proof that scientific persistence and human generosity can create miracles.