An Israeli woman who became pregnant with the help of fertility treatments discovered that the fetus she is carrying is neither genetically related to her nor her husband, according to a report from the Health Ministry on Wednesday.
The report came to the Health Ministry from Assuta Hospital in Rishon LeZion, where the genetic testing was being performed.
Embryo transfer is also known as the final stage in the process of in vitro fertilization (IVF). One full IVF cycle usually takes about three weeks. It requires an individual to suppress their natural menstrual cycle and undergo hormone treatments to stimulate ovum (egg) growth. Then, the ova are extracted and fertilized by professionals in a lab setting. Ideally, this results in several viable embryos, one or two of which will be implanted in the uterus.
The process can be costly, and for some, it is very physically taxing. Many people go through multiple cycles before achieving a viable pregnancy.
When done intentionally, implanting a non-genetically-related embryo into the womb of someone intending to get pregnant is called surrogacy.
The Health Ministry further announced that an investigation committee has been assembled to look into the incident with the fetus not related to the woman carrying it.