A woman from the UK has been permitted to take her deceased daughter’s frozen eggs to the US for treatment, in order to be able to carry her own grandchildren.
The daughter, who died at age 28 of bowel cancer, is said to have asked her mother to carry her babies – but did not give her full written consent.
The 60-year-old mother, known as Mrs M, won a Court of Appeal decision against the UK’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) a few months ago.
The fertility regulator’s spokesperson told the BBC they would will now allow the eggs to be transported to New York because of the “exceptional and unique circumstances”.
Following a five-year legal battle, Mrs M said she and her husband were “very pleased” the HFEA have agreed to allow them to have their “beloved daughter’s eggs” exported to New York for treatment – which will be used with donor sperm.
“It is our hope that others who find themselves in a similar situation to ours will not now have to go through the protracted heartache that we have had to endure, ” she told the BBC.
The HFEA said: “This has been a difficult case, above all for Mr and Mrs M, but as the judge made clear, such issues of consent are the cornerstone of the law and needed to be carefully considered.”
Mrs M’s solicitor, Natalie Gamble said she was delighted that the daughter’s wishes “have finally been recognised”.
“The person who has given eggs or sperm should decide what happens to them,” she added.
The solicitor said the “incredibly sad story” was a warning to anyone storing eggs or sperm and people should record their intentions as clearly as possible in writing.
Top Comments
No just no. The interests of the resulting child / children's needs and welfare must be considered as a first - a dead parent and an unknown donor born to elderly guardians? I think its the mothers' grief gone mad over the loss of her daughter. I'm sure her daughter's wishes were to be a mother. She's not here to experience that now. Perhaps if she left her eggs donated to an infertile woman or couple, I'd understand. But I feel as if this child will be born to heal a wound or fulfill an emotional fantasy. It's psychologically unhealthy and unethical.
I agree, lots of counselling needed