I always feel special that I am a “pioneer” test-tube baby and like to consider my birth a “milestone” in reproductive science – Elizabeth Felo

As part of our 40th anniversary celebration, we spoke to Elizabeth about her feelings on being one of the world’s first IVF babies.

She was born at Walnut Creek’s John Muir Medical Center on March 5, 1985 – less than six years after the world’s first child born in England through the new in vitro fertilization (IVF) process. Elizabeth was the first IVF baby in the East Bay Area and our fertility clinic’s first, representing a revolution in medicine.

Elizabeth and other early IVF babies helped change public acceptance of this new treatment and of infertility itself. What many considered to be a shocking application of science to human reproduction is now the most successful treatment option for millions of people facing infertility. In fact, the World Health Organization recently reported that 1 in 6 people worldwide have infertility, a significant increase in previous infertility statistics.

Proud to be a test-tube baby

When Elizabeth was in high school and told her friends she was a “test-tube” baby, they considered it a freakish, mad-scientist experiment that she didn’t come from her parents through natural conception. They laughed about it because they didn’t understand. Elizabeth learned to be less forthcoming about her origin as an IVF baby. Not so today.

“I always feel special that I am a ‘pioneer’ test-tube baby and like to consider my birth a ‘milestone’ in reproductive science,” Elizabeth says. It inspired her fascination with the medical field where she’s worked since she was 19 years old.

“I have been the office manager of a women’s health clinic in Prescott, Arizona, for the past 10 years. I really feel that I have found my niche, so-to-speak, working in a gynecology practice,” says Elizabeth. “I always love when I get the opportunity to share my story with some of the patients at our clinic who are struggling to conceive. I think it is helpful for them to hear a success story so they feel more confident when they consult with fertility specialists.”

Her mother’s struggles to deliver her IVF baby

Elizabeth says her mother told her that she went through several painful surgeries in order to have her. “So, I was definitely a wanted child! It is my understanding that my mother was infertile due to the Dalcon Shield IUD she had in the ’70s, which caused pelvic inflammatory disease and resulted in scar tissue formation on her fallopian tubes,” Elizabeth recalls. “The scar tissue prevented her eggs from passing from the ovaries into the fallopian tubes.”

Trusting a new infertility treatment after years trying to conceive

Elizabeth’s mother, Pamela Castro, had been trying to conceive for five years with no success. “All my friends were having babies and I really wanted a family,” Pamela says. “I was constantly invited to baby showers and I would always go home crying.”

A cousin told her about a new program for infertile women. And so she met Dr. Arnold Jacobson and Dr. Donald Galen, who had trained in England where IVF originated and were ready to try it in the East Bay clinic they had established: Bay Area Fertility Medical Group, which later became Reproductive Science Center.

First IVF patient – and success on the first try

Pamela was RSC’s first IVF patient. After the surgeries to correct the damage to her fallopian tubes, she was ready to try IVF. The entire process of surgery and treatment was difficult for her, but she trusted her doctors. “They were very kind men and very good doctors,” she says.

Pamela became pregnant on the first try. Elizabeth Castro-Wilson (now Elizabeth Felo) was born about 40 weeks later, welcomed by Pamela Castro and her husband, David Wilson. They never gave up hope. For Pamela, it was unthinkable that IVF would not work, revolutionary treatment or not.

In 1984 when this – our first – IVF was performed, the rate of success was around 10%. Our current success rate for live birth per new patient under age 35 is 65%-72% depending on the number of intended egg retrievals.

“My parents were very excited and grateful for the treatment’s success!” says Elizabeth.

Reflections from our first IVF baby

That early IVF treatment made Elizabeth’s parents’ dream of raising a child come true. “I am always grateful to RSC for my existence,” says Elizabeth. “It is such a blessing today that these minimally invasive, reliable treatment options give those who are struggling to conceive a great chance at raising a family.”

RSC providers and staff have always been friendly and still make an effort to stay in touch with her. “I enjoyed meeting Dr. Galen and the embryologist at the 25-year celebration event. I have also been able to connect with Dr. Jacobson via social media in more recent years. I was conceived in a lab, so this, to me, is like meeting my creators!”