Rare cancer gene found in sperm donor sparks European regulatory concerns

Years ago, a man donated semen to a Danish bank. Many of the children born from this donation then developed early cancers because of a rare gene.

A sperm donor carries a carcinogen mutation, its sperm is used for dozens of artificial fertilizations. Ten children have already received a cancer diagnosis.

At least 67 children spread across several European countries have been conceived with the sperm of a donor who appears to have a rare cancer-causing gene mutation. At least ten children have now been diagnosed with cancer, reports the British newspaper The Guardian.

Sperm donor with cancer-causing gene passes on disease to 10 children

The man’s sperm was used to conceive at least 67 children across Europe

A sperm donor who fathered at least 67 children across Europe has been found to carry a rare, cancer-causing gene. Ten of the children have now been diagnosed with cancer. “We need to set a European limit on how many children a single donor can father,” Edwige Kasper, a biologist at Rouen University Hospital in France, told The Guardian.

The man, who made his donation to a private sperm bank in Denmark, was carrying a variant promoting the occurrence of early cancers. He is responsible for at least 67 births, including at least 23 children affected by the genetic anomaly.