A north London mother has hailed her newborn girl as “the greatest gift ever” after she became the first child in the UK to be born with a womb transplant. Grace Davidson, 36, received the organ from Amy, her older sister, making it the UK’s first womb transplant in 2023.
Following the procedure’s enormous success, she gave birth to baby Amy Isabel, who is named after her aunt and a surgeon who helped develop the surgery. The news brings hope to thousands of women who were born without a womb or whose womb is not functioning properly.
Mrs Davidson, who is an NHS dietitian, and Angus, her husband, 37, who works in finance, are on the top of the world with their new arrival. Baby Amy was born on February 27 as planned by the NHS Caesarean section at Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital in London.
Today, the world learned something extraordinary. Grace Davidson has given birth to a healthy baby – the first in the UK to be born from a transplanted womb.
A milestone in medicine, yes. But even more so, a testament to the power of human generosity.https://t.co/viYwqbqEdX pic.twitter.com/qBsXQXeWs7
— Antony Tiernan (@AntonyTiernan) April 8, 2025
Mrs Davidson said that she felt “shock” when she held her daughter for the first time, adding: “We have been given the greatest gift we could ever have asked for.” She told a news agency: “It was just hard to believe she was real. I knew she was ours, but it’s just hard to believe…
“Our family are just so happy for us. It sort of feels like there’s a completeness now where there maybe wasn’t before.”
Mrs Davidson was born with Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser (MRKH), an uncommon disorder that affects around one in every 5,000 women, resulting in an underdeveloped or absent womb.
However, the ovaries remain intact and continue to generate eggs and female hormones, making fertility treatment a viable option. Mrs Davidson and her husband undertook fertility treatment to develop seven embryos, which were frozen for IVF in central London, prior to receiving the donated womb.
Mrs Davidson then underwent surgery in February 2023 to receive the womb from her sister Amy Purdie, 42, a former primary school teacher and mother of two kids aged ten and six.
Several months later, one of the saved embryos was implanted to Mrs. Davidson through IVF. Amy, weighing 4.5 pounds, was delivered several weeks early via a planned 90-minute Caesarean section to guarantee a safe hospital-based delivery.
Mrs Davidson and her baby girl stayed in the hospital for about a week to establish breastfeeding. The new mother remarked: “The first couple of weeks were tricky because she was so sleepy, and we were struggling to kind of keep her awake enough for her feed, but she’s doing really well.
“She had a bit of jaundice to start with, and she needed a bit of light therapy, but she’s a stronger feeder now, and she’s more alert. She will kind of wake herself up when she wants a feed, which is nice.” She added: “It’s lovely to be at this stage where we can get snuggles and it’s really special.”
Mr Davidson expressed how emotional he was the moment his daughter arrived. “She came out crying, and we were a bit worried she would be whisked off to an antenatal ward, but she’s been with us every minute of her life so we’re so grateful for that,” he said.
Stand by for hairy arsed blokes dressed up as women to start demanding womb transplants …
Woman becomes first in UK to have baby after womb transplant – and names daughter after donor sister https://t.co/RBE4vjdZHf via https://t.co/p2Y1vxVJpx
— Stu Hamilton (@bluenobby) April 7, 2025
“It had been such a long wait. We’d been intending to have a family somehow since we were married, and we’ve kind of been on this journey for such a long time. Having waited such a long time, it’s kind of odd getting your head around that this is the moment where you are going to meet your daughter,” he added.
The womb transplant was performed by Professor Richard Smith, clinical lead at the charity Womb Transplant UK and consultant gynaecological surgeon at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, and Isabel Quiroga, consultant surgeon at the Oxford Transplant Centre, which is part of Oxford University Hospitals.
Truly amazing and wonderful to hear beautiful news !!’ 🎉💯❤️ https://t.co/CqtTEo4G3S
— Marilyn Hawes CEO FREEDOM FROM ABUSE (@MarilynHawes7) April 8, 2025
Amy was born in the operating room with both surgeons present, and her parents named her middle name after Miss Quiroga. Prof Smith, who initiated the development of womb transplants in the UK, cried during the birth. He said: “I feel great joy actually, unbelievable – 25 years down the line from starting this research, we finally have a baby, little Amy Isabel. Astonishing, really astonishing.”
Miss Quiroga said: “For me, it’s total joy, delight. I couldn’t be happier for Angus and Grace, what a wonderful couple.”
Womb Transplant UK has performed four womb transplants in the UK, the first on Mrs Davidson and the other three on women who got wombs from deceased donors. It has enough money for two more operations and is soliciting funds to carry out more.
Kate Brintworth, England’s chief midwifery officer, praised the NHS’ role in the delivery, adding: “I am so delighted that Grace, Angus and their whole family have been able to welcome the miracle of Amy to the world.”
