After a decade of research and failed attempts, physiologist Robert Edwards and gynecologist Patrick Steptoe achieved the first successful human birth from in vitro fertilization. Louise Brown's arrival, by planned cesarean section, proved that fertilization outside the human body could produce a healthy child, launching an industry that has since helped bring millions of children into the world.
Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe had faced fierce criticism and skepticism throughout the 1970s, with some religious leaders and scientists warning of ethical catastrophe. Funding was scarce, and the medical establishment was deeply divided over whether creating human embryos in a laboratory dish was even morally permissible.
Lesley and John Brown, the parents, had struggled with infertility for nine years due to blocked fallopian tubes. Doctors extracted an egg from Lesley, fertilized it with John's sperm in a petri dish, and implanted the resulting embryo back into her womb. The pregnancy proceeded largely in secrecy, with the medical team fearing intense media intrusion and public backlash.
When Louise Joy Brown was born weighing 5 pounds 12 ounces, she instantly became a global media sensation, dubbed the world's first 'test-tube baby.' Robert Edwards would go on to win the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2010, by which time IVF had become a routine, if still expensive, medical procedure used by millions of families worldwide.
Key people: Louise Brown, Patrick Steptoe, Robert Edwards