A baby boy has become the first in the UK to be born following a womb transplant from a deceased donor. Hugo arrived just before Christmas 2025 at Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital in London, weighing nearly 7lb. His mother, Grace Bell, from Kent, was born with Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome and received a uterine transplant at Oxford’s Churchill Hospital in June 2024.
Bell, in her thirties, had been told at 16 she would be unable to carry a pregnancy. Following the 10-hour transplant, she underwent IVF and embryo transfer at The Lister Fertility Clinic in London, and the pregnancy was managed jointly by transplant and obstetric teams.
The birth is part of a UK clinical research trial assessing deceased-donor uterine transplantation, with 10 procedures planned. Three deceased-donor transplants have been carried out to date within the programme; this is the first resulting birth. In early 2025 the team also delivered the UK’s first baby after a living-donor womb transplant, following a January 2023 procedure between sisters.
Only a small number of births after deceased-donor womb transplants have been reported in Europe, placing the UK outcome within a very limited evidence base. Globally, more than 100 womb transplants and over 70 healthy births have been reported across research centres, with protocols converging around temporary grafts and time-limited immunosuppression.
The clinical team spans Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Oxford University Hospitals. Consultant gynaecologist Prof Richard Smith, who has worked on uterus transplantation for more than 25 years and founded the charity Womb Transplant UK, attended the delivery. Transplant surgeon Isabel Quiroga co-leads the Oxford component.
Although England, Wales and Scotland operate opt-out systems for organ and tissue donation, uterus retrieval from deceased donors currently proceeds only with explicit family authorisation. NHS Blood and Transplant makes a specific request to families already supporting organ donation because the uterus is not routinely retrieved and carries additional ethical considerations.
Donation and transplantation are regulated by the Human Tissue Authority under the Human Tissue Act 2004. As a clinical study, the programme also requires Health Research Authority approvals and NHS research governance, while IVF and embryo transfer are regulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority. This multi-agency oversight is standard for complex novel transplants.
Recipients take immunosuppressive medication to prevent graft rejection and are monitored closely for infection, thrombosis and obstetric complications. Deliveries are generally by planned caesarean section. To minimise lifetime immunosuppression, the graft is usually removed after one or two pregnancies.
The child has no genetic link to the donor. Genetic parentage is determined by the embryo created from the intending parents’ gametes; the transplanted uterus provides the environment for gestation.
Uterine transplantation is not currently a routinely commissioned NHS service. In the UK, movement from research to regular care normally follows formal evidence review and policy development: NHS England’s specialised commissioning would consider safety, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness, typically informed by evidence assessments and, where applicable, NICE guidance. No national policy exists at present.
Evidence likely to inform that assessment includes graft survival and function, maternal morbidity associated with major surgery and immunosuppression, pregnancy and neonatal outcomes, and longer-term quality of life. Comparative costs across transplant care and multiple IVF cycles will also be central to any appraisal.
The case also clarifies how opt-out legislation interacts with non-routine donations. Families who support donation may still be asked separately about the uterus, and explicit agreement is required even where deemed consent applies for other organs.
Bell and her partner, Steve Powell, have expressed gratitude to the donor’s family, who consented to five other organs being transplanted into four recipients, and to NHS teams in Oxford and London. Their son carries the middle name Richard in recognition of Prof Smith’s role. The donor’s parents said they felt pride in their daughter’s legacy.