After losing her only son to cancer, a Spanish actor found an extraordinary way to keep his legacy alive – by welcoming a baby girl conceived with his sperm.
Ana Obregón’s story has sparked conversations around the world, blending grief, love and modern reproductive technology in a way few could have imagined. At the center of it all is her son, Aless Lequio García, her only biological child, who died of cancer in May 2020.
Stored sperm
In 2018, Ana Obregón’s world was turned upside down when her 27-year-old son Aless was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma, a rare type of cancer affecting the bones and the tissue around the bones.
“When my son was diagnosed with cancer and about to begin chemotherapy, the doctors recommended he store samples of his sperm, in case the medication affected him in the future, to ensure he could have children,” the TV presenter, now 70, told Hola!, adding that the samples were stored in the United States.
‘The day my child went to heaven’
The actor explained that becoming a father was something her son deeply wanted – even if he wasn’t around to raise the child himself.
“Aless was already very ill and told us that, if anything happened to him, he wanted us to know that he wanted to leave descendants in this life. Even if he wasn’t here anymore.”
Aless died in May 2020, a loss that deeply affected Obregón and changed her life forever.
She has since spoken about how difficult that time was, explaining that “the day my child went to heaven,” she made an important decision “to begin the surrogacy process. That very day.”
“From that moment on, the only thing that has allowed me to continue living each day, each second, is fulfilling the mission of bringing Aless’ daughter into the world,” she told Hola!, adding that it took several attempts for the pregnancy to take.
Aless’ daughter
On April 5, 2023, Obregón shared a post on Instagram that shocked the world.
“My Aless,” she started in the emotional message that included an image of the Hola! cover page that showed her holding a tiny baby – Ana Sandra, the daughter of her dead son. “I swore I would save you from cancer, and I failed you. I promised I would bring your daughter into the world, and here she is in my arms.
“When I hold her, I feel an indescribable emotion, because it’s as if I’m holding you again. I swear I will care for her with all the infinite love I have to give, and you will help me from heaven.”
She ended the post writing, “You are the love of my life in heaven, and your daughter is the love of my life on earth.”
‘Wanted from earth and from heaven’
The baby girl, affectionately called Anita, had been conceived using the sperm her son Aless froze before undergoing cancer treatment, along with an egg donor.
In her interview with Hola! Obregón stressed that her controversial plan wasn’t a “whim,” but her “son’s wish and last will.”
“If there are opposing opinions, I won’t tolerate any of them, nor will I accept any. Only the opinion of a father or mother who has buried a child. Only they can have an opinion and understand me,” she shared, adding she has “nothing to hide.”
“It’s a source of pride, it’s a miracle. How could I hide a blessing from God?” Obregón said. “She is the daughter of a hero. She is the most wanted child in the world, because she has been wanted from earth and from heaven,” the Who’s the Boss actor shared of Ana – who was named after “her grandmother, her great-grandmother, and her great-great-grandmother.”
‘I have been reborn’
The proud grandma has said that when Anita grows older, she will be told the story of her father – who he was, how bravely he fought his illness, and how he longed to have a child of his own.
“This girl is not my daughter, but my granddaughter,” she said, explaining that “legally, she is my daughter.” “She is Aless’ daughter, and when she grows up, I will tell her that her father was a hero, so that she knows who he is and how proud she should be of him,” Obregón said.
“As soon as she’s old enough to understand, I’ll tell her. I’ll say, ‘Look, your dad wanted you, and sadly, he’s not here. He’s in heaven. He wanted you so much, and here you are, my love.”
She added: “I have returned. I have risen again. I have been reborn. I died on May 13, 2020, and I was reborn on March 20, 2023, just like that.”
What do you think of Obregón’s decision to have a baby using her son’s sperm? Please let us know your thoughts in the comment section and then share this story so we can get the conversation going!
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