Childless women 'could get womb transplants next year'

Following successful animal experiments, a team, led by Prof Mats Brannstrom of University of Gothenburg in Sweden, claims that doctors will be soon able implant childless women with healthy wombs from donors, the 'Daily Mail' reported.

The forecast will bring hope to the thousands of women of childbearing age who are born without a womb or have had it removed because of disease, say the scientists. The team has succeeded in implanting donated wombs in mice, rats, sheep and pigs and are now hoping to achieve the same success in women, the findings of which have been published in the latest edition of the 'Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research'.

The only human womb transplant so far took place in Saudi Arabia in 2000, but the donated organ failed after four months. And, the Swedish scientists believe this was because of the complexity of connecting the new womb to the body's blood supply.

But Prof Brannstrom said: "During the last decade, there has been considerable progress in surgical techniques." According to him, womb transplants could to be carried out as early as next year, at one of ten hospitals around the world. But, the transplant would only be temporary as the new womb may have to be removed after one or two pregnancies.
Meanwhile, a British team, from Hammersmith Hospital in London, has also been developing womb transplants and has carried out successful experiments on rabbits.