Greek couple welcomes daughter conceived from 22-year-old frozen embryo
A 54-year-old Greek mother gave birth to a baby girl using an embryo frozen for more than two decades, just before reaching the country's IVF age limit.
A Greek couple welcomed a daughter on Wednesday in Athens after using an embryo that had been frozen for 22 years. The birth came less than three months before the mother, 54, would exceed Greece's legal age ceiling of 54 for women to undergo in-vitro fertilisation procedures.
The woman, Cristina Rapti-Tzelepi, decided to pursue the pregnancy after her 21-year-old son died in a road accident earlier in the year. She said she had only a 2½-month window to complete the treatment and that the process was stressful, but she relied on her doctor and the medical team to overcome the obstacles.
"I only had a 2½-month window," Rapti-Tzelepi said.
The baby, named Georgia in memory of the late son Giorgos, weighed 3.49 kilograms at birth. Her father, Constantinos Raptis, expressed gratitude to the physician for giving the family hope.
"He took us by the hand and pulled us out of our deepest darkness," Raptis said.
Dr. Kostas Pantos, head of the Hellenic Society of Reproductive Medicine, noted that Greece's strict age limit may need revision given the country's declining birth rate.
"The law is very strict: 54 plus one day is not allowed. Maybe it’s time for it to change," Pantos said.
The couple may consider further children, potentially by seeking treatment abroad.