Brain-dead US woman made miracle of giving birth

A 26-year-old brain-dead US woman who was kept on life support for almost three months at a Virginia hospital gave birth to a baby girl on Tuesday.

The baby, delivered by caesarean section, weighed one pound and 13 ounces (0.8 kg) and was being monitored in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Virginia Hospital Center, the hospital said in a statement.

The mother, Susan Torres, was four months pregnant with her second child. Her husband, Jason, agreed, leaving his job to be at his wife's side and running up huge medical bills over the next three months, BBC reports.

Now she has given birth to a girl, Susan Anne Catherine Torres.

Susan suffered a stroke on May 7 in the 17th week of her pregnancy due to an aggressive melanoma and was brain dead, her family said.

A statement on The Susan M. Torres Fund Web site said the baby, named Susan Anne Catherine Torres, was doing well and there were no complications during delivery.

The fund was established to help the Torres family raise money to defray medical costs not covered by insurance. The mother was kept on life support at Virginia Hospital Center to allow time for the fetus to develop, Reuters informs.

"The entire staff and administration of Virginia Hospital Center, especially the physicians and nurses caring for Susan Torres and Baby Girl Torres, are delighted with the successful delivery," the hospital statement said.

The hospital provided no further information.