"‘Oldest baby’ born from 30-year-old frozen embryo"

Oldest Known Frozen Embryo Results in Birth in the U.S.

A child has been born in the U.S. from an embryo frozen in 1994, according to reports.

Thaddeus Daniel Pierce was delivered on 26 July in Ohio to Lindsey and Tim Pierce after they received an embryo preserved more than 30 years ago. The embryo had been donated by Linda Archerd, 62, who had initially preserved it during her own fertility journey.

In the early 1990s, Archerd and her then-husband pursued in vitro fertilization (IVF) after difficulty conceiving. The process produced four embryos in 1994: one was used for Archerd’s pregnancy, resulting in a daughter who is now 30 and a mother herself. The remaining embryos were frozen and stored.

“We weren’t aiming to set any records,” Lindsey told *CuriosityNews*. “We just hoped to have a child.”

IVF involves collecting eggs from a woman’s ovaries, fertilizing them in a lab, and transferring the resulting embryos into the womb. These embryos can also be frozen for later use.

After her divorce, Archerd retained control of the embryos and later learned about embryo donation, a process where donors and recipients mutually decide on placement. She sought a white, Christian married couple, leading to the Pierces receiving the embryo.

“The delivery was difficult, but we’re both healthy now,” Lindsey said. “He’s very calm, and we feel incredibly fortunate.”

Archerd observed similarities between Thaddeus and her own daughter as an infant. “I compared photos, and they clearly look like siblings,” she noted.

The clinic that performed the transfer is led by John Gordon, a reproductive specialist and Reformed Presbyterian who advocates for reducing stored embryos. “Our principles stem from our beliefs,” he said. “Every embryo should have the chance at life—the only one that can’t develop into a healthy baby is the one never transferred.”

In the U.K., IVF births have risen from 1.3% in 2000 to 3.1% in 2023—roughly one in 32 births. For women aged 40 to 44, IVF accounts for 11% of births, up from 4% in 2000. In the U.S., about 2% of births result from IVF.