Greek woman has baby from 22-year-old embryo

A 54-year-old Greek woman has given birth to a baby girl after an embryo frozen more than 22 years ago was transferred in December, her gynaecologist said.

Konstantinos Pantos said Christina Rapti-Tzelepi used an embryo from the same initial batch as an earlier transfer that led to the birth of her son in 2004. Pantos said the family lost the son in a road traffic accident in October 2025 at age 21.

Rapti-Tzelepi is at Greece's maximum allowed age for in vitro fertilisation. Her husband, Konstantinos Raptis, said the family had been in a “race against time” to see the pregnancy through and called for the national IVF age limit to be lifted.

Pantos said the couple have another nine embryos in storage and would like to have another child, but are currently unable to do so under the law.

Rapti-Tzelepi told state broadcaster ERT that the family felt both mourning and joy, but that “everything disappeared this morning” when they held the baby.

Greece's birth rate has been declining for years. State statistics in 2025 showed births had fallen by more than 2,800 from a year earlier, while births to mothers over 40 had increased over the past 20 years.