Baby born in US from embryo frozen more than 30 years ago breaks record
The US birth was made possible due to embryo "adoption". (Reuters: Amir Cohen)
In short:
A baby has been born from an embryo first cryopreserved in 1994.
His birth, on July 26, is believed to have broken the record for the world's "oldest" baby.
The previous record-holder for an embryo that was frozen before a successful live birth was a pair of twins who were born in 2022 from embryos frozen in 1992.
A US baby boy born from an embryo that had been in storage for more than 30 years is believed to have broken the record for the world's "oldest" baby.
The embryo of Thaddeus Daniel Pierce, who was born on July 26, had been cryopreserved since 1994, according to MIT Technology Review, which broke the story.
His parents, Lindsey and Tim Pierce, who live in the US state of Ohio, "adopted" the embryo from the 62-year-old woman who created it.
The couple said those in their lives had likened it to "something from a sci-fi movie".
Mr Pierce was a toddler when his son's embryo was first created, and Thaddeus also has a 30-year-old sister.
The previous record-holder for an embryo that was frozen before a successful live birth was a pair of twins who were born in 2022 from embryos frozen in 1992.
Linda Archerd, who donated the embryo, said it had been "pretty surreal".
"It's hard to even believe," she told the US journal.
The birth was made possible with the assistance of a Christian embryo adoption service.
These services believe an embryo is equivalent to a born child and look to reduce the number of discarded embryos.
This includes the case of frozen embryos that have been stored in outdated ways.
Christian embryo adoption services look to reduce the number of embryos that are discarded. (AP: Michael Wyke)
Ms Archerd originally froze four embryos with the Snowflakes Embryo Adoption Program run by the Nightlight Christian Adoptions agency.
After having her own daughter, the other three were left in storage, and despite divorcing her husband, she did not want to discard the embryos.
The program Ms Archerd used also allows donors to choose a couple, and can state religious, racial and nationality preferences.
She wanted a white, married Christian couple from the US.
"I didn't want them to go out of the country," Mr Archerd told the journal.
"And being Christian is very important to me, because I am."
No plans to break records
Ms Archerd finally found her match in the Pierces, who had been trying to have a child for seven years.
"We didn't go into it thinking we would break any records," Mrs Pierce told the journal.
"We just wanted to have a baby."
The pair say, despite a rough birth, both Mrs Pierce and Thaddeus are doing well.
Ms Archerd said he looks just like her own daughter as a baby.
"I pulled out my baby book and compared them side by side, and there is no doubt that they are siblings."
Snowflakes' vice-president Elizabeth Button said the embryo adoption program honours Ms Archerd for donating her remaining embryos, and Mr and Mrs Pierce for adopting embryos that many fertility clinics would not have taken a chance on.
"Though we encourage placing families to make decisions sooner rather than later regarding their remaining embryos, this story affirms that frozen embryos do not have a 'shelf life'. All are deserving of the opportunity to be born."