Adriana Iliescu
Encyclopedia
Adriana Iliescu is a retired Romanian
university lecturer and author of children's novels. She received international media attention in 2005, when she gave birth to daughter Eliza at age 66, making her the oldest birth mother in the world until this record was broken in 2006. Eliza, who was delivered at Giuleşti Maternity Hospital in Bucharest
, is Iliescu's biological (but not genetic) child, since she gestated in Iliescu's womb but was conceived by an ovum
and sperm
donated anonymously.
treatment to reverse menopause
in 1995 and in vitro fertilisation
(three zygote
s with sperm
and ovum
from two anonymous donors) in 2004, becoming pregnant with triplets
. After ten weeks one of the three fetus
es failed to progress and died. The remaining two fetuses, both girls, weighed just 1.45 kilograms (3.19 pounds) and 0.69 kilograms (1.54 pounds) after 33 weeks of pregnancy
, but after complications the smaller of the two died in the womb. Though doctors were expecting to perform a caesarian section soon after the 34th week, the death of one of the twins led to the decision to operate earlier than planned. The surviving baby was expected to remain in hospital for six weeks.
The story became international headline
news, causing debate as to whether fertility treatment is ethical after a certain age. The release of details about the pregnancy and birth was criticised when different information was reported by different news companies. One primary source was a Realitatea TV
interview with Iliescu conducted a month before the birth. The age of Iliescu was reported as 67 by some sources and the exact details of the second, and in some reports third, fetus differed greatly. For example, a CNN
news website article http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/01/16/romania.mother.ap/ was updated after a day, changing her age from 67 to 66. Gheorghe Borcean, head of the Romanian medical profession's ethics committee commented: "A case of such prominence should require academic debates and not just one single television report."
Television and newspaper polls and discussions around the world asked the public what their opinion of the ethical decision was.
Romanians
The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
university lecturer and author of children's novels. She received international media attention in 2005, when she gave birth to daughter Eliza at age 66, making her the oldest birth mother in the world until this record was broken in 2006. Eliza, who was delivered at Giuleşti Maternity Hospital in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, is Iliescu's biological (but not genetic) child, since she gestated in Iliescu's womb but was conceived by an ovum
Ovum
An ovum is a haploid female reproductive cell or gamete. Both animals and embryophytes have ova. The term ovule is used for the young ovum of an animal, as well as the plant structure that carries the female gametophyte and egg cell and develops into a seed after fertilization...
and sperm
Spermatozoon
A spermatozoon is a motile sperm cell, or moving form of the haploid cell that is the male gamete. A spermatozoon joins an ovum to form a zygote...
donated anonymously.
Pregnancy
Iliescu was first given hormoneHormone
A hormone is a chemical released by a cell or a gland in one part of the body that sends out messages that affect cells in other parts of the organism. Only a small amount of hormone is required to alter cell metabolism. In essence, it is a chemical messenger that transports a signal from one...
treatment to reverse menopause
Menopause
Menopause is a term used to describe the permanent cessation of the primary functions of the human ovaries: the ripening and release of ova and the release of hormones that cause both the creation of the uterine lining and the subsequent shedding of the uterine lining...
in 1995 and in vitro fertilisation
In vitro fertilisation
In vitro fertilisation is a process by which egg cells are fertilised by sperm outside the body: in vitro. IVF is a major treatment in infertility when other methods of assisted reproductive technology have failed...
(three zygote
Zygote
A zygote , or zygocyte, is the initial cell formed when two gamete cells are joined by means of sexual reproduction. In multicellular organisms, it is the earliest developmental stage of the embryo...
s with sperm
Spermatozoon
A spermatozoon is a motile sperm cell, or moving form of the haploid cell that is the male gamete. A spermatozoon joins an ovum to form a zygote...
and ovum
Ovum
An ovum is a haploid female reproductive cell or gamete. Both animals and embryophytes have ova. The term ovule is used for the young ovum of an animal, as well as the plant structure that carries the female gametophyte and egg cell and develops into a seed after fertilization...
from two anonymous donors) in 2004, becoming pregnant with triplets
Multiple birth
A multiple birth occurs when more than one fetus is carried to term in a single pregnancy. Different names for multiple births are used, depending on the number of offspring. Common multiples are two and three, known as twins and triplets...
. After ten weeks one of the three fetus
Fetus
A fetus is a developing mammal or other viviparous vertebrate after the embryonic stage and before birth.In humans, the fetal stage of prenatal development starts at the beginning of the 11th week in gestational age, which is the 9th week after fertilization.-Etymology and spelling variations:The...
es failed to progress and died. The remaining two fetuses, both girls, weighed just 1.45 kilograms (3.19 pounds) and 0.69 kilograms (1.54 pounds) after 33 weeks of pregnancy
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
, but after complications the smaller of the two died in the womb. Though doctors were expecting to perform a caesarian section soon after the 34th week, the death of one of the twins led to the decision to operate earlier than planned. The surviving baby was expected to remain in hospital for six weeks.
International interest
Romanian laws governing the process are currently under review and, to bring them in line with typical European legislation, may prevent any form of such treatment after the age of 50.The story became international headline
Headline
The headline is the text at the top of a newspaper article, indicating the nature of the article below it.It is sometimes termed a news hed, a deliberate misspelling that dates from production flow during hot type days, to notify the composing room that a written note from an editor concerned a...
news, causing debate as to whether fertility treatment is ethical after a certain age. The release of details about the pregnancy and birth was criticised when different information was reported by different news companies. One primary source was a Realitatea TV
Realitatea TV
Realitatea TV is a Romanian news television network. The channel is distributed by many cable operators in Romania and Moldova. Its main owner is Romanian businessman Elan Schwartzenberg....
interview with Iliescu conducted a month before the birth. The age of Iliescu was reported as 67 by some sources and the exact details of the second, and in some reports third, fetus differed greatly. For example, a CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
news website article http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/01/16/romania.mother.ap/ was updated after a day, changing her age from 67 to 66. Gheorghe Borcean, head of the Romanian medical profession's ethics committee commented: "A case of such prominence should require academic debates and not just one single television report."
Television and newspaper polls and discussions around the world asked the public what their opinion of the ethical decision was.