In the complex world of assisted reproduction, anything can happen-well, almost.
For example, while eggs and sperm may be frozen for years usually for future use, they are normally obtained from older women. This is the first time that a baby was born using frozen ovarian tissues of a woman who had them removed when she was still a teen.
The woman, who remains unnamed in media reports, was diagnosed with a severe form of sickle-cell anemia when she was 5. Sickle-cell anemia refers to the abnormal production of red blood cells, which may appear sickles under a microscope.
Coming from Congo, she and her family moved to Belgium where she eventually received a bone marrow transplant to save her life. However, before they could do that, doctors needed to perform chemotherapy, which could cause significant damage to her reproductive system. It was this time they decided to have tissues of one of her ovaries removed and frozen when she was 13.
Although she survived the transplant, her other ovary didn't, which she lost by 15. Thus, when she already wanted to become pregnant, she pinned her hopes on the frozen ovarian tissues, which were thawed before being transplanted.
Before half a year, she began menstruating, which meant her tissues were working. Two years after the transplantation, at 27, she became pregnant and delivered a healthy boy naturally.
The case, which was published in Human Reproduction, was significant for three reasons. First, although the chances are slim, frozen reproductive cells and tissues can still die. Second, almost always, these situations happen in women. Third, and perhaps the most important of all, it tend to mean that the woman was already in the puberty stage despite having not menstruated at the time the tissues were removed.
Her case may give hope to young women who are at an increased risk of developing ovarian failure.
