First test tube baby mother Lesley dies
30 June BBC
The woman who gave birth to the world's first test tube baby has
died.
Lesley Brown, 64, who lived in Whitchurch, Bristol, made history in
July 1978 when her daughter Louise was born at Oldham General Hospital.
Mrs Brown had been trying for a baby with her husband John for nine
years before she became the first woman to give birth following IVF
treatment.
She died at the Bristol Royal Infirmary on 6 June with her family by
her side, it has been announced.She successfully conceived following
pioneering treatment by Patrick Steptoe and Robert Edwards.She leaves
behind daughters Louise and Natalie, who were both born following IVF
treatment, her stepdaughter Sharon and five grandchildren.Her husband
died five years ago.
A private funeral service was held in Bristol on Wednesday morning.
Louise Brown said: "Mum was a very quiet and private person who ended
up in the world spotlight because she wanted a family so much."We are
all missing her terribly."Dr Steptoe and Prof Edwards set up the Bourn
Hall Clinic in Cambridge two years after Louise Brown's birth. It is now
a leading centre for IVF treatment.
Speaking on behalf of Mr Edwards and the team at the clinic, chief
executive Mike Macamee said: "Lesley was a devoted mum and grandmother
and through her bravery and determination many millions of women have
been given the chance to become mothers.
"She was a lovely, gentle lady and we will all remember her with deep
affection."Speaking in 2008, Mrs Brown said she had been so desperate to
have a baby that she was willing to put up with anything to give birth.
At the time, she said: "I'm just so grateful that I'm a mum at all
because without IVF I never would have been and I wouldn't have my
grandchildren."
Her blocked fallopian tubes meant getting pregnant naturally was
impossible.
In 1976, she heard about new research and was referred to Dr Steptoe,
after which she agreed to the experimental procedure.Although other
women had been implanted with fertilised eggs, Mrs Brown was the first
to achieve a pregnancy which went beyond a few weeks.The attention
around the pregnancy brought with it concerns for her baby's safety.
Mr Edwards said in an interview in 2008: "We were concerned that she
would lose the baby, the foetus, because the press were chasing Mrs
Brown all over Bristol where she lived.
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