25-year-old woman gives birth from embryo frozen 25 years ago
Newborn infant Emma Wren Gibson and her mother, Tina, already have something in common: They were both conceived in the early 1990s.
In 1992, the embryo that became Emma Gibson was frozen and donated to a religious clinic in Knoxville, Tennessee. In 2017, Tina Gibson, 25, and her husband, Benjamin Gibson, adopted the embryo, and on Nov. 25, they welcomed Emma. "I think she looks pretty perfect to have been frozen all those years ago," Benjamin Gibson said in a statement.
Sean Tipton, spokesman for the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, told NBC News it's possible Emma set a record for being the oldest embryo transferred to a woman's uterus, but there's no way to determine it because of privacy laws. The length of time an embryo is frozen is "not very important," Tipton said, as the risks come when the embryo starts to thaw. If it makes it through that stage, it has the same chances of resulting in a healthy pregnancy as any other embryo.
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
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Unprepared for a pandemic
Opinion What happens if bird flu evolves to spread among humans?
By William Falk Published
-
6 impressive homes in Toronto
Feature Featuring floating stairs in Lytton Park and a two-tiered infinity pool in Banbury-Don Mills
By The Week Staff Published
-
Samantha Harvey's 6 favorite books that redefine how we see the world
Feature The Booker Prize-winning author recommends works by Marilynne Robinson, George Eliot, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditions
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on record
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homes
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creature
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published