A baby boy has become the first child in the United Kingdom born after a womb transplant from a deceased donor. Hugo was delivered by caesarean section at Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital in December 2025.
His mother, Grace Bell, was born with Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome, a rare condition affecting about one in 5,000 women. The disorder causes the uterus and vagina to be underdeveloped or absent, though ovaries function normally. Doctors told Bell at 16 that she could not carry a child.
She received a donor womb at Churchill Hospital in June 2024. The surgery lasted nearly seven hours. She later underwent IVF and embryo transfer at Lister Fertility Clinic.
The transplant formed part of a research programme led by Womb Transplant UK. The charity plans ten deceased donor transplants and has completed three so far. Hugo is the first baby born under the initiative.
Consultant surgeon Isabel Quiroga of Oxford University Hospitals said the procedure requires connecting tiny blood vessels. Doctors classify such pregnancies as high risk and monitor them closely.
Medical experts describe the birth as a major milestone, offering new hope to women without a womb.
