This woman and her son were born from the same womb


Emelie Eriksson gave birth to her son, Albin, almost two years ago, and now she's ready to talk about the groundbreaking procedure that allowed her to have a child, using a uterus donated by her mother. Eriksson, who lives just north of Stockholm, tells The Associated Press that giving birth from the womb she was also born from is "like science fiction." Now 30, she was 15 when she discovered that she had been born without a uterus, and thanks to the operation performed by Swedish surgeon Mats Brannstrom, she became the first woman to give birth using a uterus donated by her mother. "This is something that you read in history books, and now in the future when you read about this, it's about me," Eriksson said.
Brannstrom is the only doctor to have delivered infants from transplanted wombs — he has delivered five of them so far, and a sixth due in January — but he says he believes the procedure will one day be routine. Baylor University hospital in Dallas just announced this week that only one of four uterus transplants it performed succeeded, though the woman is not yet ready to get pregnant, and a uterus transplant earlier this year at the Cleveland Clinic was rejected. Eriksson said she is talking about her experience now to give hope to women who were in her situation. "I hope this will be a reality for everyone that needs it," she told AP. You can watch Eriksson, her mother, and Dr. Brannstrom discuss this miracle of modern medicine in the AP video below. Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Today's political cartoons - May 10, 2025
Cartoons Saturday's cartoons - artificial intelligence, cryptocurrency, and more
-
5 streetwise cartoons about defunding PBS
Cartoons Artists take on immigrant puppets, defense spending, and more
-
Dark chocolate macadamia cookies recipe
The Week Recommends These one-bowl cookies will melt in your mouth
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster show
Speed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
-
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar take top Grammys
Speed Read Beyoncé took home album of the year for 'Cowboy Carter' and Kendrick Lamar's diss track 'Not Like Us' won five awards
-
The Louvre is giving 'Mona Lisa' her own room
Speed Read The world's most-visited art museum is getting a major renovation
-
Honda and Nissan in merger talks
Speed Read The companies are currently Japan's second and third-biggest automakers, respectively
-
Taylor Swift wraps up record-shattering Eras tour
Speed Read The pop star finally ended her long-running tour in Vancouver, Canada
-
Drake claims illegal boosting, defamation
Speed Read The rapper accused Universal Music of boosting Kendrick Lamar's diss track and said UMG allowed him to be falsely accused of pedophilia