Transgender women could potentially undergo successful womb transplants in the future

author: FutureCar Staff    

Womb transplants in transgender women are not expected to happen for many years, according to Professor Richard Smith, one of the surgeons who performed the UK's first such operation. In February, Professor Smith and colleague Isabel Quiroga carried out the womb transplant on a woman whose sister was the living donor. The procedure allows women who are missing a functioning womb to have a chance at having a baby. While there has been speculation that transgender women could also benefit from the operation, Professor Smith believes there are still many technical obstacles to overcome.

Professor Smith explained that the pelvic anatomy, vascular anatomy, and shape of the pelvis are different in trans women, and there are also issues related to the microbiome, the network of micro-organisms in the human body. He stated that although there has been talk about transgender transplants, the technical feasibility is currently lacking. He estimated that it could take a minimum of 10 to 20 years before such transplants become a reality.

However, Dr Paige Porrett, a leading surgeon in the US who established the uterus transplant program at the University of Alabama, believes that it is medically possible for transgender women to undergo the procedure. She mentioned that there is a lot of interest among providers, but more work needs to be done to ensure the safety of the operation.

Professor Mats Brannstrom, the chief physician at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, who helped deliver the first live birth from a transplanted uterus in 2014, also believes that it will be possible for transgender women to have womb transplants in the future. He receives inquiries from people assigned male at birth and believes that if the procedure is efficient and safe, there are no ethical boundaries preventing it.

A medical paper published in January stated that several teams are working to make womb transplants a reality for transgender women. The report acknowledged that there are challenges, such as linking the transplanted uterus to the constructed vagina during gender reassignment surgery and dealing with the effects of an altered microbiome. However, the authors anticipated that the first uterus transplant in a transgender female could take place within the next few years.

The UK's first womb transplant, performed on a woman whose sister was the living donor, was considered a massive success by the surgical team. The recipient, a 34-year-old woman who remains anonymous, underwent a nine-hour and 20-minute operation at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford. She has stored embryos and plans to undergo IVF later this year.

FutureCar Staff