09/09/2024
Twins were born from embryos frozen for 30 years
Twin babies were born in October 2022 from embryos that had been frozen for over 30 years, setting a likely new record for the longest-frozen embryos to result in a live birth.
The embryos were originally created in 1992 through IVF for an anonymous couple, with the man in his 50s and using a 34-year-old egg donor.
They were stored at -196°C in a fertility lab before being donated to the National Embryo Donation Center in 2007. The embryos were then thawed and transferred to an Oregon mother of four, who gave birth to the twins with her husband. This remarkable event highlights the success of embryo adoption, with the National Embryo Donation Center stating that they have facilitated the births of over 1,200 babies through donated embryos. Embryo freezing, or cryopreservation, is the process of freezing and storing embryos for future use, typically in liquid nitrogen tanks, offering couples an alternative to embryo destruction. Couples choose embryo freezing for various reasons, such as preserving embryos for future pregnancies after a successful IVF cycle, avoiding the full IVF procedure after a failed attempt, or for fertility preservation before medical treatments like chemotherapy. Transferring frozen embryos is considered a safer and more affordable option, especially when planning for additional children. Advances in IVF technology have made using frozen embryos safe, with studies suggesting that babies born from frozen embryos may have better health outcomes, including longer gestation periods and higher birth weights, compared to those born from fresh embryos.
