A team of Cleveland Clinic surgeons met with reporters yesterday to discuss the first uterus transplant performed in the U.S. Doctors Andrea Tzakis and Rebecca Flyct say the procedure they performed last month offers hope to an estimated three to five percent of women worldwide who have uterine factor infertility, a condition in which she is either born without a uterus or has irreversible damage.
The patient is identified as Lindsey, a 26-year-old woman who did not have a uterus. She says she's grateful to have a chance to give birth.
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The Texas woman underwent a nine-hour procedure and will have to wait a year before attempting to become pregnant. She'll also have to have the uterus removed after giving birth to one or two children.