A sperm donor carrying a rare genetic mutation linked to aggressive cancers has fathered at least 197 children across Europe, with some already having died from the disease.
The donor carried a TP53 mutation associated with Li-Fraumeni syndrome, a hereditary condition that dramatically increases lifetime cancer risk. Despite the mutation, the donor himself remained healthy and was unaware he carried the gene at the time of donation.
The man donated sperm through Denmark’s European Sperm Bank, which was later distributed to 67 fertility clinics in 14 countries. Investigators said the number of affected children could still rise as not all countries have released complete data.
The European Sperm Bank acknowledged that the donor’s sperm had been overused and expressed its “deepest sympathy” to affected families. The bank said the mutation could not have been detected through standard screening at the time of donation and confirmed that it “immediately blocked” the donor once the issue was identified.
Children conceived using the donor’s sperm were born in Denmark, Belgium, Spain, Greece, and Germany. Samples were also sent to Ireland, Poland, Albania, and Kosovo, and used in fertility treatments for women from Sweden.
Medical findings showed that up to 20 percent of the donor’s sperm carried the harmful TP53 mutation. Any child conceived from those affected samples inherited the mutation in every cell, significantly elevating cancer risk.
Li-Fraumeni syndrome carries up to a 90 percent lifetime risk of developing cancer, including childhood cancers and breast cancer later in life, making the case one of the most far-reaching genetic failures linked to sperm donation in Europe.
