Some UK women who were treated in Danish Fertility clinics have been affected by a European sperm donor with a rare cancer-causing mutation.
The Irish Times reports that the sperm donor has a genetic mutation which increases the risk of cancer by up to 90 per cent, and has fathered at least 197 children across Europe.
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), the UK's independent regulator of fertility treatment, confirmed that the Danish Patient Safety Authority informed it of a small number of UK women having been treated in Danish Fertility clinics with this sperm donor.
The BBC reported that the man was paid to donate sperm as a student and that his sperm was used for about 17 years.
According to RTÉ, the sperm was sold to Ireland but no children in Ireland were born from it.
The man, who has not been named, passed donor screening tests.
Chief Executive of the HFEA, Peter Thompson, said: “We can confirm that the Danish Patient Safety Authority has informed us that a very small number of UK women have been treated in Danish Fertility clinics with this sperm donor.
"We understand that they have been told about the donor by the Danish clinic at which they were treated.
"As the UK regulator, we only collect or hold information about treatment which takes place in the UK. As the treatment took place at Danish clinics, further enquiries should be directed to the competent authority in Denmark.”
The BBC reported that 20 per cent of the man's sperm carry a genetic mutation of the TP53 gene.
According to The Irish Times, the TP53 gene protects from cancer by controlling the growth of cells. People with a change in the TP53 gene have Li-Fraumeni syndrome.
And people with this syndrome have up to 90 per cent increased risk of developing cancer before they turn 60.
This includes breast cancer; brain tumours; osteosarcoma; soft tissue sarcomas and childhood cancers.
