A British lesbian couple has successfully played their part in a landmark procedure whereby their baby was carried in both parents wombs.
Jasmine and Donna Francis-Smith have become the first parents to successfully give birth to a child born through the ‘Shared Motherhood’ procedure. The procedure, offered by the London Women’s Clinic, involves one partner incubating the egg in the early stages of development before the egg is then implanted via IVF into the other partner who then carries and gives birth to the baby. Over 100 babies have been born through a similar method of artificial incubation, however, this procedure takes the incubation process one step further by allowing both partners to participate.
Speaking to The Telegraph about the experience, Lance Cpl Donna Francis-Smith said “We’re overwhelmed to be honest, it’s blown up massively. You get a lot of same-sex couples where one person is doing the whole thing, and the one person is getting pregnant and giving birth, whereas with this we’re both involved in a massive way.”. It was Jasmine Francis-Smith who gave birth to the baby in Colchester, with Donna being the initial incubator for baby Otis.
When asked about baby Otis’ progress, Donna said “ He’s really good - he’s just chilling out. He’s a really good boy. Jasmine said he’s going to be an astronaut, but he can be whatever he wants to be”
Both Jasmine and Donna also took a moment to talk about the procedure, with Jasmine saying “We’re really fortunate that this was our first go at IVF, but the reality is that it doesn’t work first time for a lot of people” and Donna agreeing saying “ We’re just happy that it’s worked so well and the information is out there. It will help people in the future - it brings you closer rather than feeling one has a bond more than the other.”