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Volume 9, No 3 September 2004

Case report: Grandma, mother and another – an intergenerational surrogacy using anonymous donated embryos 

BJ Woodward1,3,4, WJ Norton2, RW Neuberg1
1Middle England Fertility Centre, BUPA Hospital Leicester, Gartree Road, Oadby, Leicestershire. LE2 2FF, United Kingdom.
2School of Nursing and Midwifery, DeMontfort University, Charles Frears Campus, 266 London Road, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE2 1RQ.
3School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington Campus, Nr. Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, United Kingdom.
4Correspondence: Tel: 004411627653686, Fax: 0044 116 2720666, email: woodwabr@bupa.com

Surrogacy and embryo donation remain beneficial but controversial infertility therapies. This is the first report of a pregnancy and subsequent birth of healthy twins following a surrogacy involving a female patient’s biological mother as surrogate, but using anonymously donated embryos. Due to the novelty of combining intergenerational surrogacy with embryo donation, the legal side of adoption has taken over 3 years to complete. Intergenerational surrogacy using donated embryos can successfully provide a family with a third generation, offering an alternative to adoption of genetically unrelated children without involvement in the pregnancy. The legal and ethical aspects of the treatment and eventual adoption are discussed.

Reproductive BioMedicine Online 2004 Vol. 9, No. 3. 260–263

Keywords: adoption, donated embryos, donation, ethics, HFEA, intergenerational surrogacy, reproductive law