A Japanese woman became pregnant with another person's baby following an egg mix-up during fertility treatment.
The mistake happened when the woman, who is in her twenties, underwent IVF treatment at a government-run hospital in Kagawa Prefecture.
But medical tests during the early stages of pregnancy revealed the implanted egg was unlikely to have come from the mother.
Further investigations led to the discovery that the fertilised eggs of another patient had accidentally been implanted.
The woman decided to abort at nine weeks upon discovery of the blunder and are now seeking £149,000 (in compensation from the prefectural government.
Yuzo Matsumoto, director of Kagawa Prefectural Central, said: "She was very happy after undergoing such a difficult procedure and becoming pregnant, but unfortunately a mistake had been made."
"The in vitro procedures are carried out in sequence one after the other. In this case the eggs from one procedure may have accidentally been left over and used in the following procedure."
Fertility treatment is increasingly common in Japan with thousands of women undergoing IVF treatment every year, during which a women's eggs are removed, fertilised outside the womb and then implanted in the uterus to lead to pregnancy.
However, medical groups traditionally do not encourage raising and bearing children who are not related to the mother. As a result, surrogate births and adoptions are comparatively rare in relation to other industrialised nations.
The mistake happened when the woman, who is in her twenties, underwent IVF treatment at a government-run hospital in Kagawa Prefecture.
But medical tests during the early stages of pregnancy revealed the implanted egg was unlikely to have come from the mother.
Further investigations led to the discovery that the fertilised eggs of another patient had accidentally been implanted.
The woman decided to abort at nine weeks upon discovery of the blunder and are now seeking £149,000 (in compensation from the prefectural government.
Yuzo Matsumoto, director of Kagawa Prefectural Central, said: "She was very happy after undergoing such a difficult procedure and becoming pregnant, but unfortunately a mistake had been made."
"The in vitro procedures are carried out in sequence one after the other. In this case the eggs from one procedure may have accidentally been left over and used in the following procedure."
Fertility treatment is increasingly common in Japan with thousands of women undergoing IVF treatment every year, during which a women's eggs are removed, fertilised outside the womb and then implanted in the uterus to lead to pregnancy.
However, medical groups traditionally do not encourage raising and bearing children who are not related to the mother. As a result, surrogate births and adoptions are comparatively rare in relation to other industrialised nations.
