Yes, uterus transplantation is possible and has already resulted in roughly 70 live births worldwide from around 100 transplants performed to date. The procedure is still considered experimental at most centers, but it has moved well beyond the proof-of-concept stage and is now offered through clinical programs at several major hospitals in the United States and abroad.
Who Qualifies for a Uterus Transplant
The procedure exists for one specific group: women with absolute uterine factor infertility, meaning they have no functional uterus. This includes women born without a uterus (a condition called MRKH syndrome), those who lost their uterus to a prior hysterectomy, and those whose uterus is too damaged by scarring or structural problems to carry a pregnancy.
Beyond having uterine factor infertility, candidates must be between 20 and 40 years old with at least one functioning ovary and good reproductive potential as confirmed by a fertility specialist. The screening process is strict. You would be excluded if you have diabetes, uncontrolled high blood pressure, a BMI over 30, a history of cancer, or HIV. Smoking within the past six months or substance use within the past year also disqualifies you. Candidates go through psychological evaluation as well, and programs require that you’ve received counseling on alternatives like surrogacy and adoption before proceeding.
How the Procedure Works
A uterus transplant is not a single event. It’s a sequence of surgeries and fertility treatments that can span years. The process begins with IVF. Because surgeons do not connect the fallopian tubes to the transplanted uterus, natural conception is impossible. You need at least four viable frozen embryos banked before you’re cleared for the transplant itself.
The transplant surgery takes roughly six to ten hours for the recipient. The donor uterus is connected to the recipient’s blood vessels, and the surgical team confirms blood flow is established before closing. Recovery involves a hospital stay and close monitoring in the weeks that follow, including regular biopsies of the cervix to check for signs of rejection.
Within three to 12 months after surgery, once the transplanted uterus is stable, doctors transfer an embryo. If the pregnancy succeeds, delivery is by cesarean section. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine notes that institutions must be prepared to follow a recipient through four or more abdominal surgeries: the initial transplant, one or more cesarean deliveries, and a final hysterectomy once childbearing is complete.
The Uterus Is Temporary
Unlike a kidney or heart transplant, a uterus transplant is designed to be temporary. The organ stays in your body only long enough for you to have one or two children. After that, surgeons remove it so you can stop taking immunosuppressant medications. These drugs, which prevent your immune system from attacking the donor organ, carry their own health risks when used long term, so removing the uterus once it’s no longer needed is a deliberate part of the plan.
The immunosuppressants used are similar to those given to kidney and liver transplant recipients. Data from decades of pregnancies in organ transplant patients show that the most commonly used regimens have not been associated with increased rates of birth defects, though any pregnancy on these medications is considered higher risk and requires close monitoring throughout.
Living Donors vs. Deceased Donors
A transplanted uterus can come from either a living donor or a deceased donor. Living donors are typically relatives or close friends, often women who have completed their own families. The majority of successful births so far have come from living-donor transplants, though deceased-donor transplants have also produced healthy babies.
From a surgical standpoint, retrieving a uterus from a deceased donor is faster and less delicate. Surgeons can cut more freely around the organ without worrying about preserving structures the donor still needs. Living-donor surgery, by contrast, requires careful dissection to avoid damaging the donor’s ureters and surrounding tissue. The tradeoff is logistics: if the deceased donor is at a distant hospital, the retrieval team may face travel and timing pressures that complicate the transplant.
Success Rates So Far
One-year graft survival, meaning the transplanted uterus is still functioning a year after surgery, sits at about 74% based on data from the first five years of uterus transplantation in the United States. That means roughly one in four transplanted uteruses fails, most commonly due to blood clot formation, infection, or rejection. When the graft does survive, the chances of achieving a pregnancy and live birth are encouraging, as the roughly 70 births from 100 transplants worldwide demonstrate.
These numbers will likely improve as surgical techniques are refined and patient selection becomes more precise. But even now, for women who have no other path to carrying a pregnancy themselves, the success rate represents a meaningful option.
What It Costs
Uterus transplantation is expensive. The total cost spans multiple surgeries (transplant, cesarean, hysterectomy), IVF cycles, immunosuppressive medications, and extensive follow-up care over several years. Most programs performing the procedure are doing so under research protocols, which means the costs may be partially or fully covered by the clinical trial. Outside of a trial setting, the combined expense of the transplant and associated fertility treatments can run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Insurance coverage is extremely limited because the procedure is still classified as experimental by most payers.
Where the Procedure Is Available
Only a handful of medical centers currently perform uterus transplants, and nearly all do so through clinical trials. In the United States, programs exist at institutions including Penn Medicine, Cleveland Clinic, and Baylor University Medical Center. Several centers in Sweden, where the first successful uterus transplant birth occurred in 2014, continue to be leaders in the field. Programs are also active or in development in Brazil, India, Turkey, and parts of Europe.
If you’re considering a uterus transplant, the first step is contacting one of these centers directly. Most have a screening process that begins with a referral from a reproductive endocrinologist and includes extensive medical, psychological, and fertility evaluations before you’re accepted into a program.