Last 31 October were born in the United States Lydia and Timothy, twin babies whose mother is only three years older than them. And no, it’s not a Halloween prank. It is the pure reality, although the story has certain nuances. Basically, because the babies have remained 30 years frozen as embryos before being transferred to the uterus of the woman who finally gave birth to them.
They have thus become the babies born from the longest-lived embryosas pointed out from the National Embryo Donation Center. Until now, the record was held by Molly Gibsona baby girl born on October 28, 2020 from an embryo that he was frozen for 28 years. The difference is small, but equally astonishing.
In fact, both are good news, as they show that the current embryo freezing techniques they are so well implemented that they can be kept for much longer than originally thought.
Two 30 year old babies
The embryos that gave rise to these two babies were generated on April 22, 1992from semen of a 50 year old man and the ova from a 34-year-old woman. The latter was a donor, while the sperm did come from the couple who requested fertilization in vitro. Several embryos were obtained, of which some were successfully transferred to the mother.
Once she decided not to have any more children, she was given the option of donate the embryos leftovers and that’s what he did. Therefore, they were kept frozen until Philip and Rachel Ridgeway They went to a Knoxville assisted reproductive center for treatment. There, they were given the option of transferring two frozen embryos from a donor. And, among the available options, they considered that those could be suitable, despite the freezing weather. After all, the case of Molly Gibson has encouraged the use of these types of embryos more frequently. The result, clearly, has been a success, since the two babies have been born without problems.
How long can embryos be frozen?
The time that embryos can be kept frozen depends a lot on the legislation of each country. In Spainfor instance, Law 14/2006, of May 26, establishes: “… for a period equivalent to the woman’s fertile life so that they can be transferred to her in subsequent attempts.”
However, this would not be exactly the case, since these embryos were not frozen for the use of their mother, but donated for other couples. In addition, the procedure has been carried out in the United States, where there are no limits in this regard. Perhaps, the limit could be established more at a technical level than a legal one. However, according to statements collected by live science of Barry BehrProfessor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Stanford University, with current technology embryos can be preserved already indefinitely.
What is to be expected, based on these statements, is that over the years we will see more cases like those of these two twins or like Molly’s. Babies that actually formed almost on par with their own parents. Without a doubt, we can say that we already live in the future.