Uterus Transplant in India

We call it a White Magic

The first uterus transplant has been successfully performed in Pune’s Galaxy Care Laparoscopy Institute (GCLI) and has hence proved to be of potential in paving the way for embracing motherhood amongst female with Uterine Factor Infertility (UFI).

Pertaining to the fact that Uterine Factor Infertility (UFI) accounts for 5 percent of the women population globally and 50,000 women in the United States, this nascent technique has sparked hope among the females who are without a womb.

Uterus Transplants in India

More than 30 uterus transplants have been completed across the globe including in Brazil, China, the Czech Republic, Germany, Sweden, India, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and at two clinics in the United States.

Laparoscopic Uterus Transplant – A Blessing to Women

This laparoscopic technique offers an absolute gold standard of medical care which shows potential in minimising the entire surgical procedure duration. Before the procedure is performed, both the recipient and the donor are made to undergo a comprehensive process including psychological therapy, specific medical tests and a clearances nod from a governmental committee.

In this procedure, the recipients are first made to undergo ovulation stimulation through IVF, and both the recipient and the donor undergo screening procedure then a healthy uterus from a female donor is transplanted into the recipient. When the uterus from the donor is removed, then the four major blood vessels of the organ are surgically anastomosed to the adjacent blood vessels in the recipient’s abdomen. However, this chunk of the entire surgical process consumes six to seven hours. Though the vascular networks to keep the newly transplanted uterus viable and functional are done while the procedure is being performed, but the fallopian tubes cannot be connected, so the next step involves implanting the frozen embryos in the womb so that the female can conceive.

If the recipient successfully conceives, then the baby is delivered via Caesarean-section, and thus it is mandatory for the new mother to take immuno-suppressants for the rest of her life to avert the rejection of the donor uterus.

This procedure is safe for both the newly born and the mother even after they are exposed to anti-rejection drugs (immuno-suppressants) and manifold surgeries coupled with biopsies for gauging the rejection of the donor uterus. To scrutinize the success of the procedure, the recipient is made to undergo sonography and take other tests after a month so that the transplanted womb is functioning normally.

Surgeons Left no stone unturned in Designing this path-breaking Technique

The surgical team of few Indian hospitals in Maharashtra was withered hearing about the wrecking tales of wombless females or few females who had undergone numerous abortions, miscarriages and failed in conceiving. In some regions of India, adoption and surrogacy are a taboo because society does not accept and favors the entire process, and there were some cases where one couldn’t conceive even after in-vitro fertilization (IVF). There were even heart-pinching tales of women who had Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser or MRKH syndrome, a condition when a female is born without a uterus. When everything failed to bring joy to women’s lives, then a ray of hope struck amongst the researchers to design a novelistic procedure which could spark hope in the country of progeny.

A Few hospitals in India have been formulating theories and engaging into ground-breaking research for womb transplants over the past few months and before performing this procedure on a woman, the surgical panel flew to Sweden to study about the transplantation technique and due to dearth of human cadavers in India, the doctors practised the retrieval on human cadavers in Germany, US. and Turkey.

What is the cost of Uterus Transplant in India?

The cost of the non-vital organ transplant will be drastically inexpensive than that of a kidney transplant. The cost of Uterus Transplant approximately ranges between USD 18000-20,000 in India whereas the cost in the US. is close to USD 70,000. The duration of the entire procedure is close to 12 hours. The cost of surrogacy in India is USD 5000 to 6000, and the cost of undergoing in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) in India is USD 3600 whereas in the US. is USD 15000.

Which are the best hospital and the best surgeon for Uterus Transplant in India?

The Galaxy Care hospital in Pune with its unparalleled excellence has garnered global appreciation and is in the limelight for having performed India’s first uterine transplant on two females, in both the cases the donors were their mothers. Patients have been queued up from all over India in Pune’s Galaxy Hospital for undergoing Uterus Transplant, and there are few enquiries even from London and Ireland for undergoing this procedure. The hospital under the directorship of Dr Puntambekar had designed the Lap Radical Hysterectomy for cancer cervix which is popularly called as the “PUNE TECHNIQUE”. Other than this, the hospital has also engaged in innovative research for Oesophageal cancer & cervical cancers. The Directorate of health services, Maharashtra had granted Galaxy Care hospital the license to perform this surgery.

Dr Shailesh Puntambekar (Medical Director of Galaxy Care Hospital) performed this surgery, and he was assisted by a panel of 14 doctors. Since 2003 all the cancer surgeries performed by him have been performed laparoscopically. 

The scope of Uterine Transplant in India

Researchers are on the verge of making a sea change since they have indulged in extensive research in designing techniques which will mitigate the duration of the procedures because the longer a patient is on the operating table, the greater the odds are of contracting an infection, bleeding and being exposed to anaesthesia-induced complications.

The Uterine Transplant is taking 10 to 12 hours, but the next phase of the study will involve performing a robot-assisted surgery, which will open avenues to shortening the procedure of harvesting the uterus to eight hours. Meanwhile, Dr. Shailesh Puntambekar has promised the world and is prepping to break new ground via designing a technique to perform the donor uterus in between eight and nine hours laparoscopically, thereby paving the way for a minimally invasive future.

However, the procedure is still investigational and warrants further research. A panel of doctors in Sweden who performed the world’s first uterine transplant on a woman who got her uterus from a family member and she is now a mother of eight babies. This promising novel technique has come as a light in the lives of the women to promise the country its progeny.

If any of the women in the world are struggling to have a baby, do not hesitate and free feel to approach Medmonks. Our team will help you walk through the entire procedure and will help you plan out the treatment. We make all the necessary arrangements and help you get your appointment scheduled with the best medical care institute in Uterus Transplantation. Our team members counsel the patients and make them aware of the required treatment opportunities available in Indian hospitals with minimal cost.