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First Uterus Transplant in US Fails


FILE - A life-sized rubber model of a uterus is used as a health educational tool at a workshop in India, Nov. 6, 2008. The first uterus transplant at a U.S. hospital failed due to a “sudden complication.”
FILE - A life-sized rubber model of a uterus is used as a health educational tool at a workshop in India, Nov. 6, 2008. The first uterus transplant at a U.S. hospital failed due to a “sudden complication.”

The United States' first uterus transplant has failed.

Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio said Wednesday the 26-year-old patient developed a "sudden complication" and the transplanted organ had to be removed.

Doctors gave no additional information on the condition itself. They said there is always a risk in organ transplants, and that they took all necessary precautions and measures to ensure patient safety.

The patient, who is only identified as Lindsey, says she is doing "OK" and thanked her medical team for putting her health and safety first.

She was given the uterus from a deceased donor Feb. 24.

Despite Wednesday's developments, the Cleveland Clinic says the study is still ongoing "with a commitment to the advancement of medical research to provide an additional option for women and their families."

The study is to involve 10 women who have problems conceiving a child.

The procedure has been successful in Sweden with five healthy births from nine transplants.

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