With age, the fertility is said to slope down the graph. The most fertile years are set in such a way so that we can take care of our children when we are still capable enough. However, science and technology have bewildered us many times by reversing the rules of nature to our benefits.
The world was in shock when a 101-year old Italian woman became a mother to a 9-pound baby after an ovarian transplant. Apparently, the news of the birth drew extensive criticism from a medical professional. This was because despite her ripe age she underwent an ovary transplant and, then, later conceived and gave birth to a baby. A lot many controversies revolved around the transplant operation that was conducted by Dr. Alexandro Popolicchi in a private clinic in Turkey as it is considered illegal under European laws.
The mother Anatolia Vertadella considers the birth of her 17th child Francesco as a blessing and “a testament to the creator’s power.” She said she felt useless and punished by God since the age of 48 years when she could no longer get pregnant when diagnosed with ovarian cancer after bearing 16 children. However, she considers it as God’s generosity to have granted with the gift of fertility once again.
Dr. Popolicchi, who was the lead the team of doctors and endorsed the operation, said that he is no one to judge if it is right or wrong. He clears off by saying that Anatolia birthed a beautiful baby and it was no less than a miracle and undoubtedly, a gift from God. He said that the child got a loving home in a world where so many children are born unwanted or by an accident.
Vertadella’s husband had passed away long ago in 1998. She had found a sperm donor on the internet, who is a 26-year old Catholic—the mother only wanted a union permitted by the Catholic Church. She knows that the man will not be responsible for the child in any way and added that she loves her deceased husband and desires to stay a widow until death. She simply needed to fulfill a higher purpose.
Though this story leaves us surprised, this has not been the first time a mother has birthed a child in old age. Previously, Malegwale Ramokgopa from South Africa was the world’s oldest mother, who born was born in 1839 and became a mother of twins in 1931 at a ripe age of 92.
