Woman of 66 has baby

A retired professor yesterday became the oldest woman in the world to give birth - at the age of 66.

Adriana Iliescu, who was due to have twins next month, had a girl Eliza Maria.

Her pregnancy was induced after a scan revealed one of the children had died.

Doctors feared for the safety of the second twin but she was born weighing 1.4kg (3lb) and 'in perfect health'. Ms Iliescu's age was probably unrelated to the other twin's death, said doctors in the Romanian capital, Bucharest.

'The mother is doing well - she's saying she has been given a new lease of life,' added hospital staff.

Josephine Quintavalle, for the ProLife Party, said a child deserved a mother and father who 'will be around for as long as possible'.

Ms Iliescu had nine years of hormone treatment to delay her menopause before becoming pregnant. The egg was fertilised with donor sperm.

Last month, she said: 'I worked so hard in my career that I had no chance to start a family.

'A woman has a right to give birth and I had to follow my dream - no matter how old I was.'

Previously, the oldest woman to give birth was Satyabhama Mahapatra, a 65-year-old Indian who was impregnated in 2003.

The British record is held by hill farmer Liz Buttle. She had a son, Joe, in 1997 at 60 after lying about her age to receive fertility treatment.

Many experts warn of the risks of becoming pregnant after 50 because of physical stress.