Widow, 33, is pregnant with her late husbands baby after undergoing IVF treatment
Widow, 33, reveals she’s pregnant with her late husband’s baby, two years after he died from brain cancer – saying she used his sperm for IVF so she’ll always have ‘a piece of him’
Lauren McGregor, 33, fell pregnant with late husband’s baby in September 2021Her husband Chris McGregor, 37, passed away from brain tumour in July 2020 She and Chris made the decision to freeze his sperm in 2017 after his diagnosis Mum-to-be has four other frozen embryos that she could use for future children
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A widow who is pregnant with her late husband’s baby revealed how she underwent a round of IVF with his frozen sperm.
Lauren McGregor, 33, from Merseyside, Liverpool, fell pregnant with her late husband’s baby in September 2021 and is due to give birth this month.
Her husband, Chris McGregor, 37, froze his sperm in 2017, after after being diagnosed with a brain tumour in December 2013.
Chris’ symptoms and treatment spanned from 2013 to 2020, including periods he was in remission, before he passed away in July 2020.
Lauren McGregor, 33, from Merseyside, Liverpool, revealed how she underwent a round of IVF with her late husband’s frozen sperm. She is pictured with her late husband Chris McGregor
Lauren fell pregnant with her late husband’s baby in September 2021 and is due to give birth this month
Lauren, who runs a party planning business in her hometown, said: ‘Looking back, I do kind of regret us not trying for a baby while he was still alive’.
‘With his health it just always took a back seat, it felt like there was always something stopping us. But people always say there’s never a good time to have a baby.
‘I started this journey to have a piece of Chris, I don’t want pity or anything, just raise awareness to say it can be done.’
Lauren said that while she can’t wait to become a mum, it’s difficult knowing her child will never be able to meet Chris.
Chris, pictured with Lauren in hospital, was diagnosed with a brain tumour in December 2013 and he tragically he passed away in July 2020 aged just 37
‘I’m really looking forward to being a mum, although I am sad that the baby will never meet Chris’, she said.
‘All of our friends knew that we wanted children together, so aren’t necessarily shocked but just surprised by the situation. Everyone has been wonderful, they’re so supportive.
‘At first I kept it quite close to my chest, I only let a few of our close friends and my family know.’
Lauren has four other frozen embryos that she could use for future children.
She said: ‘I do think once this one gets to three or four that this is something I’d consider doing again.
‘It’s funny, I suffered really badly with nausea and sickness with this pregnancy, and I said a friend to never let me do this again!
Lauren and Chris had known each other since they were children and first got together just nine months before he fell ill
Lauren, pictured with her late husband Chris, has four other frozen embryos that she could use for future children
Lauren, pictured with her late husband Chris, started documenting her journey on her Instagram account in order to raise awareness of posthumous conception as an option for couples
But once that past, you get excited for everything to come, like any mum does.’
Lauren started documenting her journey on her Instagram account in order to raise awareness of posthumous conception as an option for couples.
‘I started sharing my journey because wanted to raise awareness about this as an option’, she said.
‘Even the fact that it can be done this way, not everyone knows it’s an option, and there’s a lot of paperwork to be filled out.
‘If you go to a fertility centre and you’re going through any cancer treatment, it’s part of the process to have a form to sign consent over to your partner in case anything happens to you.
‘That doesn’t happen if you’re not already ill, so if you’re doing this, and lose your partner unexpectedly, you might not be able to use the sperm or eggs that your partner banks.
‘You never know what’s around the corner, so I do think they should change the process and make that standard for everyone.’
Chris’ symptoms and treatment spanned from 2013 to 2020, including periods he was in remission. He is pictured in hospital
Chris’ symptoms began very mildly back in 2013, and he went into remission several times. He is pictured in hospital after brain surgery
Lauren and Chris had known each other since they were children and first got together just nine months before he fell ill.
‘Chris and I had know each other since we were children, our mums were really good friends’, she said.
‘We reconnected in 2012 and started dating in April 2013, so it wasn’t very long before his first symptoms.
‘After he died, I had to wait nine months before I could start the IVF process as a sort of grieving period, and to make sure I knew what I was entering in to.
‘Having a baby was something we spoke about for years while we were together, and said we wanted to do.’
Chris’ symptoms began very mildly back in 2013, and he went into remission several times.
She said: ‘Obviously we didn’t know they were symptoms at the time, but they started in October 2013.
Chris, pictured with Lauren in hospital, started chemotherapy in January 2020. He passed away later that year in July
‘He was feeling poorly, he’d go to the doctors because he had a head cold, he was getting hot flushes if he stood up a bit too fast.
‘Then in December 2013, we were on the phone and lost signal, and we had agreed before if we ever lost signal he would call me so we weren’t both ringing each other at the same time.
‘We lost the signal and he didn’t call me for an hour, but when he did he said it took so long because he couldn’t remember my name to ring me back.’
The pair booked an appointment at the GP straight away, who recommended they go to A&E.
Lauren said: ‘They ruled out a stroke quite quickly, and did some blood tests, and then a CT scan.
‘Once they confirmed there was something on his scan, he was admitted straight away, and he had brain surgery in March 2014.
Lauren said that while she can’t wait to become a mum, it’s difficult knowing her child will never be able to meet Chris
Mum-to-be Lauren, pictured showing off her baby clothes, says she would consider having another baby when her first child is a toddler
‘They managed to remove 95 per cent of the tumour, and a year later he had pretty much fully recovered.’
Chris’ tumour returned multiple times, once in 2016 and again in 2019.
Lauren said: ‘His symptoms came back at the end of 2016, but it wasn’t big enough for surgery so he did chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
‘Then in November 2019 he started describing the same symptoms again, and we found out he had a second tumour in the other side of his brain.
‘He started chemotherapy in January 2020, and after three months the second one had disappeared and the first was contained.
‘The doctor recommended stopping chemo because with COVID she didn’t want his immune system compromised.
‘That May the symptoms were back, and another scan showed the tumour had grown beyond belief, and he passed away in the July.’
