Samsung Med. Center achieves Korea's first uterine transplantation

The first successful case of uterine transplantation surgery in Korea has been reported, with the patient currently preparing for pregnancy.

Samsung Medical Center announced on Friday the Multidisciplinary Uterine Transplantation Team successfully transplanted a uterus from a deceased donor to a 35-year-old woman suffering from "Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser" (MRKH) Syndrome in January this year. The patient has been maintaining a stable condition for 10 months.

This woman had undergone uterine transplantation in July last year, which had failed. The success of the uterine retransplantation surgery is reported to be the world's first.

Currently, tissue tests conducted periodically after the transplantation show no signs of rejection, and the patient is maintaining a regular menstrual cycle. Before the surgery, the Samsung Medical Center uterine transplantation team modified eggs collected from the patient's ovaries and sperm from her husband to prepare embryos. They are currently guiding the embryo to implant in the transplanted uterus.

MRKH Syndrome is a congenital condition where the uterus and vagina are either absent or underdeveloped, occurring in approximately 1 in 5,000 women. Ovarian function is normal, allowing for ovulation, and theoretically, with a transplanted uterus, pregnancy and childbirth are possible.

According to a Sept. announcement by the International Society of Uterus Transplantation, 27 centers in 19 countries, including the Samsung Medical Center case, attempted uterine transplantation. A total of 109 surgeries were performed, resulting in the birth of 66 babies.

Write to Ji-Hyun Lee at bluesky@hankyung.com