(Reuters) – Surgeons in Cleveland have performed the first uterus transplant in the United States, an Ohio medical center said on Thursday.

The 26-year-old patient, who was not identified in order to protect her privacy, was in stable condition after nine hours of surgery on Wednesday at the Cleveland Clinic, the hospital said.

The transplanted organ came from a deceased donor, it added.

Last year, the Cleveland Clinic began screening candidates for uterus transplants, which replace a non-functioning uterus, potentially allowing a woman to become pregnant and give birth.

A research team at the hospital continues to screen transplant candidates with Uterine Factor Infertility (UFI), an irreversible condition found in 3 percent to 5 percent of women worldwide, the hospital said in a statement.

In 2014, a Swedish woman became the world's first to give birth after having a womb transplant.

(Reporting by Victoria Cavaliere; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)(Image-npr.org)