Sperm bank mixup leaves distressed man and others asking, 'Who am I?'

A man in the UK is speaking out after a mix-up at a sperm bank regulatory agency caused him to receive incorrect information about the identity of his biological father.

Key Takeaways:

• A UK man shares that he believed he was given information about his biological father from a sperm bank, only for a DNA test to later reveal that the information he had was incorrect.

• The mix-up exposes flaws in the sperm and egg donation industry.

• Many people conceived via sperm and egg donation recount struggling with questions of identity.

The Details:

Nathaniel Allbut, 22, told the UK's Channel 4 News he always knew he was born of a sperm donor, but didn't have any information about this donor — his biological father.

The unknowing left some lasting questions.

"Who I am, why I look the way I am. Where I'm from. Just so many questions, like, who am I?" he told the news outlet.

Wrong genetic info given to people born by sperm donation

When he turned 18, he applied to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), which gave him the information it had regarding his sperm donor. Though it didn't offer him any identifiable information, he was able to see the man's hair and eye color, religion, and nationality, as well as some hobbies the man had.

It wasn't until several years later that Allbut took a DNA test. Those results contradicted everything he had been given from the HFEA. “I found a completely different list of information on Ancestry, which didn’t make sense because it just didn’t correspond to the original file I’d been sent,” he explained.

Through that DNA test, he was able to connect with a half-brother, who was able to give him information on the man who is likely his actual biological father.

HFEA refused to take responsibility, telling Allbut, “We have not identified any errors in the information we hold on the HFEA Register or in the clinic’s Records.” However, it later placed the blame on the fertility clinic used by Allbut's family. That clinic is no longer operating.

The regulatory agency now says it is aware of “fewer than 20 cases” where it may have received incorrect donor information from clinics, and that it was “probably confined to a very small number of donor clinics back in the 1990s and early 2000s.”

Allbut is calling for greater oversight in the industry overall.

“They need to take accountability for what’s happened,” he said, adding:

There were years of my life where I believed that I was someone I wasn’t, or I had a background that wasn’t actually true. And I think the least they could do is just admit that they’ve made a mistake and correct it.

I think it’s just important that this does get corrected because it’s not just me[;] there are other people who have been given wrong information.

Why It Matters:

While technologies like sperm donation, egg donation, and IVF continue to experience widespread growth, stories like Allbut's are more important than ever to underscore that the industry is deeply flawed — and leaves little recourse for the children created.

Several other women, who were impacted by the mix-up and interviewed by Channel 4, expressed feeling completely helpless in the situation. As one noted:

“I feel the fertility industry does a lot to protect the donor but not a lot to protect us.”

The Bottom Line:

Allbut's question — who am I? — is not unique; many children created through sperm and egg donation have spoken of feeling a void and wondering about their true identities.

The occurrence of lab mix-ups and other errors only compound those feelings, as many people are unable to ever truly learn their heritage or where they've come from.