Surgeons closer to womb transplants

They have worked out how to transplant a womb with a good blood supply which could mean it lasts long enough to carry a pregnancy to term.

A breakthrough in this area would offer an alternative to surrogacy or adoption for women whose own wombs have been damaged by diseases such as cervical cancer.

Around 15,000 women of childbearing age are currently living with a womb that does not work or were born without one.

Richard Smith, consultant gynaecological surgeon at Hammersmith Hospital in London, presented his latest research on rabbits at a US fertility conference. He said more than 50 women have approached him about transplants - all desperate for new wombs.

He and colleagues now need cash to move their research forward but have been denied grants by several medical research bodies. The team needs £25,000 for the next section of research and £250,000 to complete a set of studies.

The experts have set up a charity - Uterine Transplant UK - and believe the first successful human transplant could be carried out within two years if they raise enough funds.

Their most recent study involved five donor rabbits and five recipients, which were operated on at the Royal Veterinary College in London. The rabbits received a womb using a "vascular patch technique" which connected major blood vessels, including the aorta. Of the five, two rabbits lived to 10 months and examinations after death showed the transplants were a success.

Mr Smith's next step is to get rabbits pregnant through IVF to see how the womb copes, before moving on to larger animals.

Mr Smith said: "I think there are certain technical issues to be ironed out but I think the crux of how to carry out a successful graft that's properly vascularised - I think we have cracked that one."