Womb Transplant Baby Born: UK first after deceased-donor womb transplant
A baby boy has become the first child in the UK to be born using a womb transplanted from a dead donor, a womb transplant baby born to Grace Bell who is in her 30s. Bell says her son Hugo, now 10 weeks old, is "simply a miracle" and the family have thanked the donor's relatives and medical teams in Oxford and London for their support.
Womb Transplant Baby Born details
The child was delivered just before Christmas 2025 at Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital in west London, weighing nearly 7lbs. Bell and her partner Steve Powell, from Kent, named their son Hugo; he is described as 10 weeks old in the family update. The womb used in the transplant came from a dead donor.
Patient background and diagnosis
Grace Bell was born without a viable womb and does not have periods but does have normal ovaries, a condition called MRKH syndrome, which affects one in every 5, 000 women in the UK. She was told at the age of 16 that she would not be able to carry her own child. Faced with that diagnosis, the couple's only options were to hope for a womb transplant or pursue surrogacy.
Surgery, IVF and transfer
Bell underwent a womb transplant operation at The Churchill Hospital in Oxford in June 2024. The operation lasted 10 hours. Some months after the transplant, the couple received IVF treatment and an embryo transfer at The Lister Fertility Clinic in London.
Birth and immediate details
When Hugo was born, Bell said: "It was simply a miracle. " She added: "I remember waking up in the morning and seeing his little face, with his little dummy in, and it felt like I needed to wake up from a dream. " Bell has also said her little boy Hugo is "simply a miracle" and earlier described the experience with the words "words can't explain. "
Clinical trial and reactions
Bell and Steve Powell paid tribute to the "kindness and selflessness" of the donor and her family for their "incredible gift", and they thanked medical teams in Oxford and London who supported their journey. Bell said: "I think of my donor and her family every day and pray they find some peace in knowing their daughter gave me the biggest gift: the gift of life. "
Surgeons involved in the case described the birth as "a ground-breaking moment" that could give hope to many more women with a similar diagnosis. The successful womb transplant from a deceased donor is one of 10 such transplants taking place as part of a UK clinical research trial; three transplants have already been carried out and this is the first baby born.
When Bell received the phone call that a womb had been donated and a transplant was possible, she remembers being "in complete shock" and "really excited" while also feeling acutely aware of the donor family's "incredible gift" that would enable her to carry and give birth to her own child.
Hugo's arrival at Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital, London, was described by Bell as feeling like "a miracle. "
All parties involved have emphasised gratitude to the donor family, the surgical teams who performed the 10-hour operation at The Churchill Hospital in Oxford, and the fertility team who carried out IVF and the embryo transfer at The Lister Fertility Clinic in London.
Unclear in the provided context: wider clinical follow-up plans and the donor's identity and circumstances.
Closing: The birth of Hugo marks the first successful delivery in the UK following use of a womb transplanted from a dead donor, and families and clinicians involved describe the outcome as a deeply emotional, ground-breaking development for women with MRKH syndrome.
