Uterus transplants from deceased donors – Behind the Headlines
This February, it was announced that Grace Bell was the first person in the UK to have a baby following the donation of a uterus from a deceased donor. As technology and science develops, organ donations from living and deceased donors raise different ethical and legal questions.
Dr Natasha Hammond Browning, an expert in healthcare law, specifically reproductive technologies and start of life issues, explores if there are less ethical risks involved in womb transplants from a dead donor than a transplant from a living donor.
Hugo Bell, born in December 2025 is the first baby in the UK to be born following the donation of a uterus from a deceased donor. Hugo’s birth follows the birth in February 2025 of baby Amy Isabel who was born from a living donor uterus transplant. Both babies are the successful outcome of clinical trials initiated and funded by Womb Transplant UK.
When donating an organ for transplantation, living donors must have capacity to freely consent to that donation, while deceased donors can consent prior to death or a family member can consent post-death. Organ donation is not without its risks for living donors as they undergo a radical hysterectomy that carries considerable physical short and long-term risks, and ethical concerns include familial pressure to donate, autonomy, and whether the harm (or risks of harm) to the living donor outweigh any potential benefit of donation to the recipient
The key ethical argument in favour of deceased donation is that it avoids any risk of harm to living donors. It also avoids any potential risk of coercion to donate. Another benefit of deceased donation is that it broadens access to uterus transplantation as not all potential recipients will have an eligible living donor, or recipients may not be willing for a living donor to put themselves at risk of harm. The news that Hugo has been born in the UK recognises and celebrates the selflessness of the donors’ family to donate at a time of loss.
However, the use of deceased donors is not ethically problem-free. Family members may refuse consent to donate due to the life-giving potential of the uterus, there are concerns that requesting uterus donation may negatively impact donation rates of life-saving organs, and commercialisation of uterus transplantation risks exploitative and unethical practices arising. Notwithstanding this, it must be recognised that the number of eligible deceased donors is small, with few medically suitable donors.
While it must be asked if it is ethical to continue with living donor uterus transplantation when births following deceased donation have been achieved, it must be recognised that it is not a simple answer.
For an in-depth exploration of the issues that uterus transplantation raises, interested readers can read International Legal and Ethical Perspectives on Uterus Transplantation edited by Natasha Hammond-Browning and Nicola J Williams (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2024).