A woman who had 14 failed IVF attempts has finally become a mum after one sister donated an egg and the other offered to be her surrogate.
Sam Bryant, 44, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2003 and, despite medics preserving her uterus, she went on to have 14 failed IVF attempts costing £54,740 (A$100,000).
In a desperate attempt to have a child, she travelled to a fertility clinic in Spain and accepted friends' offers to donate their eggs, but every effort failed.
After six months of chemotherapy and finally being in remission, the midwife and her primary school teacher husband Ben, 45, thought their dreams of having a family were over.
But Sam's sisters came to the rescue with Rachel, 40, offering to carry a baby for her sister and Nikkita, 27, donating her eggs.
After one failed attempt, the trio were delighted to discover that the second round of IVF had worked.
And thanks to her younger sisters, Starla, now four, was born in 2017.
Sam, from Melbourne, Australia, said: "We've always been really close but this has brought us closer together.
"I'm so grateful to them both and I can't even explain how lucky we feel.
"We're so lucky to have Starla, we adore her and we just stare at her every day in amazement. When she was born it was surreal.
"My mum and dad are so supportive and proud of the way it all turned out because it could have gone pear shaped.
"She has a really close relationship with her aunties. They will always be very special aunties.
"They accept their role is as aunties and there are no hang ups about the fact that she's the girl Rachel gave birth to or anything like that."
Rachel had a smooth pregnancy and both Sam and Nikkita were at her side when she gave birth.
Sam says the experience has brought the sisters closer than ever, and Rachel and Nikkita get to see their niece regularly as they all live within 20 minutes of each other.
She said: "My sisters were the ones who suggested it, they said enough was enough.
"We were exhausted financially and I was on a lot of medication to help my body be able to carry a baby so I was really sick.
"They said they wanted to fix it and insisted I broached it with my fertility specialist who said it was a great idea.
"I was a bit wary at first because Nikkita was only young but we're closer than we've ever been.
"Starla already understands the situation, we explained that auntie Nikkita gave auntie Rachel an egg and she was made so she's very aware."
Nikkita added: "I wanted to play a role in helping Sam and Ben become parents and knew that by doing this then Sam would have a biological connection to the child.
"My eggs weren't being used as they were being discarded by my body once a month so why not put them to good use.
"Seeing Sam and Ben with Starla for the first time provided an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment and I felt extremely proud of Rachel for being such a champion surrogate and sister.
"It was very special knowing that Rachel and I were finally able to give Sam and Ben their wish of having a beautiful family of their own."
