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In case you missed our “shout out” on Facebook last week, the “father of the test tube baby,” Robert G. Edwards, won the Nobel Prize for medicine. Edwards was able to visualize in vitro fertilization (IVF) as a treatment for infertility as early as the 1950’s. Perhaps his greatest accomplishment? Fertilizing human egg cells outside of the womb– in laboratory test tubes.
Fast forward to July, 1978. Place: Oldham, northern England. What: Louise Brown, the world’s first test tube baby, is born! Louise has since married and given birth on her own– without the use of assisted reproductive technology (ART).
The Nobel Prize committee noted that Edwards’ work has led to the subsequent birth of over 4 million babies! We feel that pride here at RRC, too, and our own Dr. Celeste Brabec recently visited with a reporter at The Kansas City Star. Dr. Brabec noted, “Improvements in medications, medical procedures and laboratory technology have turned in vitro fertilization into the most efficient way for couples with fertility problems to have children.” We’ve written before about IVF and other options for helping couples conceive.
Congratulations to Robert Edwards! Thanks also to Dr. Brabec. Has the advent of IVF positively affected YOUR life? Share with us!