It looks like we’re on the cusp of an historic moment in British medicine, with doctors set to create the country’s first baby using ‘three-person IVF’.
Scientists at Newcastle University are gearing up to apply for a licence to carry out the pioneering procedure, which has been developed to eradicate certain genetic disorders in the next generation.
With the procedure recently being deemed safe and viable, doctors now just need to get the green light from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA).
Once the HFEA gives its approval, which is expected to happen at a meeting on December 15, individual clinics will be invited to lodge their own applications for licence.
With reports that Newcastle University has already selected potential candidates, they are expected to be the first medical team to carry out the procedure.
The process, formally known as mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT), caters to women in danger of passing on a potentially fatal genetic disorder to their children. It was recently found to result in normal pregnancies.
Commenting on the significance of the procedure, Doug Turnbull of Newcastle University said: “We can’t say that it abolishes the risk of transmitting mitochondrial disease, but it is a strategy to reduce the risk.”
What an exciting time!
