Woman who received a donated uterus from her mum has fallen pregnant
An Australian woman who was told she would never have children again has fallen pregnant thanks to her mum.
Kirsty Bryant's mother Michelle Hayton, 54, volunteered to donate her uterus to her daughter to give the 30-year-old another chance at being a mum.
The duo underwent marathon surgeries at Sydney's Royal Hospital for Women, with the procedure coming in at a massive 16 hours to give Bryant the hope of being a mum once again.
Her mother had to go under the knife for 11 hours to have her uterus removed.
It took a further four hours to place the womb in her daughter.
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It all was worth it in the end, though.
The Coffs Harbour woman has just revealed not only has she recovered from surgery, but she is now also seven weeks pregnant with her second child.
Speaking to the ABC, the 30-year-old mum-of-one revealed the prospect of a second child is now starting to sink in.
"It almost feels like it's meant to be, but it's still sinking in that I am going to have another baby at the end of the year," she said.
"It's so wonderful that my body can do this and that my mum has given me this gift."
However, giving birth will be a whole new ballgame for Bryant as the uterus, which also carried her throughout her mother's pregnancy, has no nerve connections to the rest of her body.
This means Bryant won't be able to feel when her body goes into labour.
Instead, the soon-to-be mum-of-two will have a caesarian to bring her new bub into the world at around 37 weeks of pregnancy.
Her mother is 'over the moon' about the exciting impending pitter-patter of little baby feet.
The 54-year-old sat down with 60 Minutes Australia to explain how she jumped at the chance to help her daughter on her second journey to motherhood.
"She's not just my daughter, she's my best friend and I would do anything to help her on her journey," Hayton said.
She did admit to being rather astonished when her daughter rang with the incredible request for her womb.
Hayton revealed her daughter opened with 'Hey Mum, what do you think about having a hysterectomy and giving me your uterus?'
"And I was, like, 'I beg your pardon?'," her mum said of her reply. "I said, 'Really? Is that a thing?'"
Well, it is, and it has allowed her 30-year-old daughter the rare second chance to expand her family, so all's well that ends well.
The first uterine transplant took place in 2012, allowing two babies to be born from the procedure.
There have since been a further 90 successful transplants worldwide since, leading to 50 births.
Rachel Lang