A Danish sperm donor’s samples, used globally, carried a rare cancer-risk mutation. Over 190 children were conceived before the genetic issue was identified.
COPENHAGEN: Nearly 200 children worldwide were conceived using sperm from a donor carrying a genetic mutation that increases cancer risk.
Denmark’s public broadcaster DR revealed the case on Wednesday, involving an anonymous Danish donor using the alias Kjeld.
The man’s sperm was sold to 67 clinics across 14 countries between 2006 and 2022.
In Denmark alone, 99 children were fathered by this donor, according to authorities.
The European Sperm Bank (ESB) was alerted in April 2020 after a donor-conceived child was diagnosed with cancer and found to have a genetic mutation.
It tested a sample of the donor’s sperm, but the initial screening failed to detect the rare TP53 mutation.
Sales of the sperm, temporarily suspended during testing, subsequently resumed.
The sperm bank was informed in 2023 of at least one other donor-conceived child with the mutation who had developed cancer.
Further testing of several samples then confirmed the donor carried the gene, though he himself was healthy.
The use of his sperm was finally blocked in late October 2023.
The Danish Patient Safety Authority stated 99 children were born from the donor’s sperm after fertility treatment.
“Based on our survey… 49 children were born to women living in Denmark and 50 were born to women living outside Denmark,” the agency told AFP.
The ESB described it as “a rare and previously undescribed TP53 mutation.”
It stated the mutation is only found in a small part of the donor’s sperm cells and not in the rest of his body.
The company insisted the mutation could not be detected by prior genetic screening and not all conceived children have it.
It added that it has been involved in the births of more than 70,000 children globally over two decades.
Many European countries limit the number of children per donor, but no international regulations govern cross-border donations.
The European Sperm Bank set a maximum of 75 families per donor at the end of 2022.
