The world’s first test-tube baby has paid tribute to the fertility pioneers who gave her and millions of others life as she celebrates her 35th birthday.
Louise Brown was born at Oldham General Hospital on July 25, 1978, after her parents Lesley and John became the first parents to successfully undergo in-vitro fertilisation (IVF).
Her birth attracted controversy, with religious leaders expressing concern over the use of artificial intervention and some raising fears that science was creating ‘Frankenbabies’ who could experience medical difficulties later in life.
There are now thought to be more than 5.5 million IVF babies worldwide and, as she prepared to celebrate her birthday with a private family meal, Brown said she hoped the public could now see the benefits of the breakthrough.
It is just the beginning of life that’s a little bit different, the rest is just the same
“When I was born they all said it shouldn’t be done and that it was messing with God and nature but it worked and obviously it was meant to be,” she added.
“It’s helped millions all around the world and if it can help improve success rates, obviously it’s a good thing.
“I’ve now had my own son without IVF and lots of people I know or have heard of have gone on to have children naturally.
“That shows that it is just the beginning of life that’s a little bit different, the rest is just the same.”
Brown, whose younger sister Natalie was also the product of IVF, now lives near Bristol. She is married and has a six-year-old son, Cameron.
She recently unveiled a plaque to honour IVF pioneers gynaecologist Patrick Steptoe and reproductive biologist Robert Edwards at Bourn Hall, the clinic they founded in Cambridge and where the techniques and drugs now used worldwide were first developed.
Their research led to the successful fertilisation of a human egg outside the body and the transfer of the resulting embryo to the womb.
Sir Robert, who was awarded a Nobel Prize in 2010, died aged 87 in April this year. Steptoe died in 1988 and did not receive the prize as it is not awarded posthumously.
Brown described Sir Robert as “grandad Bob”. She added that she remembered Steptoe as a “gentle giant”.
“Without Patrick and Bob’s help, mum wouldn’t have had me,” she said. “As I got older, mum explained to me how they had both helped.
“Bob was like a grandad to me and I felt very, very sad to hear of his death. He was so well liked and so many people owe so much to his work.”
The world’s first IVF baby boy, Alastair MacDonald, 34, from Glasgow, joined Brown at the plaque unveiling last month.
Remembering his childhood, he said: “My friends used to ask me how I learnt to climb glass to get out of a test tube and was I sponsored by Pyrex. It was all good natured.
“Growing up felt incredibly normal, I didn’t know any different. I’m still very proud to be part of that history but you can let your head go in a spin if you think too much about it.”
Jenny Joy, Sir Robert’s daughter, said that he would like to be remembered as the ‘father of IVF’.
“When dad first started working on this, years before Louise was born, infertility really wasn’t taken that seriously,” she said.
“There was a lot of criticism to overcome and a lot of science to do. He believed that there was nothing more important in the world than having a child. He was very fortunate to have a family of five daughters and he believed what he was doing was right.
“There could not be a greater legacy than over five million IVF babies. Dad would smile every time a new one was born because he knew that there was nothing more important than family.”