The paper by Edwards, Steptoe, and Bavister, “Early Stages of Fertilization in Vitro of Human Oocytes Matured in Vitro,” was published in the journal Nature in 1969. Unfortunately, Jean Purdy, who had performed the experiment, was not credited, consistent with the conventional practice of cutting women out of science. Later, both Edwards and Steptoe made several attempts to acknowledge her contributions, for IVF was born in Purdy’s hands. In the lab, she created the first human embryo produced through IVF; in the hospital, she would later cradle the first IVF baby. In 1985, she died of
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