US EditionOne Sperm Donor Fathered 200 Children And Passed On A Deadly Mutation – And It Could Easily Happen Again
A rare genetic mutation linked to early-onset cancers was unknowingly passed to roughly 200 children by one donor, exposing gaps in cross-border sperm donor regulation.
- Recently, an anonymous sperm donor who provided samples to the European Sperm Bank in Denmark fathered around 200 children and unknowingly carried a rare genetic mutation linked to early-onset cancers.
- Clinics typically screen donors using questionnaires and limited panels that depend heavily on donor-reported family history, leaving many rare variants undetected.
- Belgian reports show about 38 families were created despite national limits, while a different donor fathered around 1,000 children, illustrating rapid expansion without oversight.
- Families are grieving after several children died and many affected families across Europe now face high cancer risks, while investigators and regulators raise urgent questions about failed safeguards.
- A coordinated international tracking system is needed to prevent similar cases, as experts say commercial DNA testing reveals cross-border sibling networks, urging coordinated global oversight proposals beyond national limits on families per donor.
14 Articles
14 Articles
In Spain, 35 children were conceived with sperm from a donor with a potentially deadly carcinogenic gene sold by a bank in Denmark, but only 10 were born in our country, a fact that the clinics have already notified the affected potentials. An investigation by the European Union Research Journalism Network (ERU) published on Wednesday has revealed that a Danish sperm bank has sold semen from the same donor, that it carries a potentially deadly c…
How can a few donors "give birth" to hundreds of children and the need to set limits in a market that operates with "dating app" rules and is reminiscent of the "Wild West"?
One Sperm Donor Fathered 200 Children And Passed On A Deadly Mutation – And It Could Easily Happen Again
Around 200 children in several countries were conceived with sperm from a single donor who unknowingly carried a rare genetic mutation linked to early onset cancers The post One Sperm Donor Fathered 200 Children And Passed On A Deadly Mutation – And It Could Easily Happen Again appeared first on Study Finds.
The mutation of a Danish donor remained undetected for years, while his sperm was used throughout Europe.
One sperm donor fathered 200 children and passed on a deadly mutation – and it could easily happen again
Billion Photos/ShutterstockAround 200 children in several countries were conceived with sperm from a single donor who unknowingly carried a rare genetic mutation linked to early onset cancers, it has been revealed. The consequences have been devastating. Several children have already died and many families across Europe are now facing a risk they never expected. The case has prompted urgent questions. How was one donor used so widely? Why did st…
Eleven families in Greece who had children from a sperm donor who transmitted a rare carcinogenic mutation are living in anguish, while a child in Greece died a year later...More...
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