A couple from the American state of Oregon has filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against a hospital, alleging that staff used the wrong sperm during a fertility procedure over four decades ago. The shocking error meant they raised a daughter who was not biologically related to the father, a truth only uncovered through genetic testing 44 years later.
The Alleged Medical Mistake
According to legal documents filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court, the couple, identified as C.W. and K.W., sought fertility treatment at Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) in Portland in 1981. The procedure involved an insemination using the husband's semen. However, the lawsuit claims that staff instead used "foreign semen" from another patient, a man referred to as R.W., who had been treated at the clinic with his spouse around a year earlier.
The complaint alleges that OHSU failed to maintain a proper chain of custody for the semen samples. It further suggests that K.W.'s own sample may have been mistakenly used to inseminate another patient. The couple remained entirely unaware of the switch, with C.W. successfully becoming pregnant and giving birth to a daughter, A.P., who was raised as their biological child.
A Devastating Discovery Decades Later
The truth only began to emerge less than two years before the lawsuit was submitted on 26 December 2025. The catalyst was their daughter's ongoing medical issues, which were suspected to be inherited. Subsequent genetic testing confirmed the devastating reality: K.W. was not A.P.'s biological father.
The legal filing describes profound and lasting emotional harm. It states that C.W. endured the physical and emotional journey of a pregnancy that resulted from a "wrongful insemination," while K.W. was "stripped entirely of his biological fatherhood." The error, they claim, robbed them of the chance to create a child together and left them with a permanent reminder of the clinic's mistake.
Serious Health and Ethical Concerns
Beyond the emotional trauma, the lawsuit raises alarming questions about medical screening and accountability. It alleges that their daughter has suffered from medical problems inherited from her biological father. The complaint warns that neither the mother nor the child were screened for potential communicable diseases from the donor, stating, "It remains unknown whether defendants performed any screening on the foreign donor."
Furthermore, the couple accuses OHSU of attempting to "conceal or otherwise deny" the error once it came to light and of failing to properly investigate or notify other patients who may have been affected. They are seeking $17 million (approximately £8.8 million) in damages from OHSU and Providence Health for the alleged negligence and the resulting lifelong consequences.
Both medical institutions have so far declined to comment on the specific allegations detailed in the court documents.
