First U.S. woman to receive uterus transplant says she prayed for chance to get pregnant

Less than two weeks after her surgery, the first woman in the United States to undergo a uterus transplant is sharing her story.

The woman, identified as Lindsey, 26, was told at 16 she would not be able to have children, and told reporters at the Cleveland Clinic on Monday "from that moment on I've prayed that God would allow me the opportunity to experience pregnancy, and here we are today at the beginning of that journey." She has adopted three sons through the foster care system, and said she is "beyond thankful" to her donor, the donor's family, and doctors for giving her the chance to get pregnant.

Lindsey is the first of 10 patients to take part in a clinical trial at the Cleveland Clinic, and after one year of regular check-ups, she can try to conceive through in vitro fertilization. She will have to take anti-rejection drugs, and after one or two pregnancies, the uterus will be removed so the drugs can be stopped. The women chosen for the trial were either born without a uterus, had it removed, or have abnormalities that make pregnancy impossible, CBS News reports, but they have healthy ovaries that are able to produce eggs. In Sweden, nine women have undergone uterus transplants, resulting in five successful births. "This is something we've wanted to do for a long time," said Dr. Tomasso Falcone, chair of the Women's Health Institute at the Cleveland Clinic. "The experience was euphoric for us."

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