British baby is carried in two wombs

A BRITISH lesbian couple have welcomed the world’s first two-womb baby.

An egg was incubated in one woman’s uterus for the first 18 hours after fertilisation, before being transferred to the second partner’s womb for the duration of the pregnancy.

Experts at the London Women’s Clinic, which carried out the pioneering procedure, said the process gives both mothers a practical and emotional stake in the pregnancy while also providing the embryo with important nutrients.

The baby, named Otis, was born to partners Donna and Jasmine Francis-Smith in July.

Donna provided the egg and carried the embryo in the early hours of development, before it was transferred to Jasmine for implantation and pregnancy.

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Jasmine said: “The procedure really made me and Donna feel quite equal in the whole process and has emotionally brought us closer together.

“Now with baby Otis born safe and well, we feel a true family.

“If we had to go through the process again there is nothing we would change.”

The fertilised egg was placed into a small capsule, known as AneVivo, while Donna carried it.

Dr Giuseppina Lamanna, the consultant gynaecologist who supervised the couple’s treatment, paid tribute to Swiss Company Anecova for developing the groundbreaking technology.

She said: “The AneVivo method neatly brings together the contributions of the biological and birthing mothers in creating their baby, a source of tremendous satisfaction to many of the lesbian and heterosexual couples we see at our clinic.

“In this case Donna was very happy with the idea that she was creating their own embryos at home.”