Sinister real reason IVF mother was implanted with another couple's embryo: America's $6bn fertility industry exposed... as experts warn catastrophic mix-up is tip of iceberg

By TOM LEONARD, US CORRESPONDENT Published: 16:38, 24 June 2026 | Updated: 16:39, 24 June 2026 The Fertility Center of Orlando's website is full of images of the dream it once sold. Endless pictures of happy parents, staring enraptured at the gurgling little babies in their arms. For many of them, it's a miracle of modern science that they thought they might never see. The center has now closed its operations after what it calls 'thoughtful consideration.' Others might call it the mother of all IVF scandals. Tiffany Score and Steven Mills from south central Florida were one such couple, desperate to have a child who placed their faith in the wonders of modern in-vitro fertilization.  Instead, their experience with the Florida IVF clinic, based in a nondescript business park in the Orlando suburb of Longwood, became the stuff of nightmares. And not only for them but for another couple inadvertently drawn into one of the most shocking fertility clinic blunders for years. Around five years after they first approached the clinic, Tiffany gave birth to a daughter on December 11 last year. The couple couldn't have been more delighted, naming her Shea. However, they then started to notice that, physically, their baby had nothing in common with them. Tiffany has blonde hair and green eyes, while Steven has a slightly darker complexion and brown hair. They are both Caucasian. Their baby, however, with dark eyes and dark skin, was not. A genetic test confirmed what had become glaringly obvious – that their baby was not biologically theirs. Genetically, she was 100 percent South Asian and zero percent them, sharing not even a single strand of their DNA. Someone else's embryo had been implanted in Tiffany's womb. Tiffany Score and Steven Millswere desperate to have a child and placed their faith in IVF, welcoming their daughter Shea in December last year  A genetic test confirmed what had become glaringly obvious – that their baby was not biologically theirs The Fertility Center of Orlando has now closed its operations after what some might call the mother of all IVF scandals Genetically, she shared not even a single strand of their DNA. Someone else's embryo had been implanted in Tiffany's womb Skeptics have warned for years the multi-billion-dollar industry is a medical Wild West in which people desperate for children are easy prey – even from unscrupulous doctors who've secretly impregnated patients with their own sperm. Certainly, this catastrophic laboratory foul-up has exposed not only the shady history of the clinic and chief doctor responsible but the dark side of a branch of science – so-called assisted reproductive technology – which accounts for more than 100,000 babies born in the US each year and yet is shockingly under-regulated. The medical mix-up has thrown up one of the most embarrassing scandals in US fertility treatment for years and a custody court battle that involved a decision worthy of the Old Testament's King Solomon. Score and Mills could hardly have conceived what lay ahead when they chose the clinic that claimed to 'provide compassionate, advanced fertility care tailored to each unique journey.' Online, the lab and its boss, Dr Milton McNichol, received generally glowing reviews – scoring 4.5 out of five stars on Google and leaving a string of delighted new parents in their wake. 'My wife and I cannot say enough great things about Dr McNichol,' wrote a reviewer only five months ago. Another said: 'If we could give a thousand stars we would. Dr McNichol is extremely attentive, we felt like we were the only patients in the building.' Dr McNichol, the clinic's president and head endocrinologist, created three viable embryos using Score and Mills' own eggs and sperm in 2020. In April 2025, one of those embryos was supposedly transferred into her uterus, two months after a similar attempt had failed. According to the couple's lawsuit, the embryos were stored in labeled straws and then placed in a petri dish to be rehydrated. They were then moved to an incubator and monitored for a couple of hours before being implanted in the patient. After baby Shea was born and her ethnicity became obvious, the couple reportedly made repeated attempts to contact the clinic without receiving a response. They filed an emergency lawsuit in January 2026 against IVF Life, the corporate entity behind the Fertility Center of Orlando and Dr McNichol personally. The complaint alleged that through negligence or mishandling at the laboratory level, the clinic had transferred the wrong embryo. It was accused of various sloppy practices such as using 'ad-hoc handwritten labels' on the containers that held eggs, sperm and embryos. And of course, that wasn't the only issue - the couple feared that one of the three embryos they'd had frozen at the clinic had been transferred to another woman and had now been born. But they weren't suggesting any sort of baby swap. Score wrote online about how they had a 'healthy baby girl whom we love more than words can express.' Jack Scarola, one of their attorneys, said: 'They would be thrilled in the knowledge that they could raise this child. But their concern is that this is someone else's child, and someone could show up at any time and claim the baby and take that baby away from them.' Dr Milton McNichol, the clinic's president and head endocrinologist, created three viable embryos using Score and Mills's own eggs and sperm in 2020  After baby Shea was born, the couple reportedly made repeated attempts to contact the clinic without receiving a response They filed an emergency lawsuit in January 2026, alleging that through negligence or mishandling at the laboratory level, the clinic had transferred the wrong embryo The couple released a statement saying that they loved their little girl and would like to raise her as their own if allowed. 'At the same time, we are aware that we have a moral obligation to find and notify her biological parents, as it is in her best interest that her genetic parents are provided the option to raise her as their own.' The clinic agreed to cooperate, offering genetic testing to other clients who could be the parents of Shea. Privately, the company was preparing for the worst. In late March, its parent company IVF Life wrote to patients encouraging them to 'transition their care to CNY Fertility.' It would turn out to be a new name for the same IVF laboratory and testing facility in Longwood led by Dr McNichol. Score's sister, Alexa, set up a GoFundMe account to help cover 'extensive medical expenses, including prior IVF costs, hospital bills and mental health therapies.' The money would also go towards efforts to find the biological parents and retrieve eggs that Tiffany had frozen at a different clinic seven years ago. 'The emotional trauma produced by such a scenario is impossible to comprehend,' wrote Alexa Score. 'Desperately wanting to celebrate the miracle that is birth while battling utter shock and confusion.' In early April, the scandal-plagued clinic quietly announced on its website that it was closing. It was revealed that its head doctor McNichol faced at least two other lawsuits. Last year, he was accused by a male patient of destroying his ability to have children by ruining the sperm that he'd had frozen. In 2025, he was also accused of using a 'severely mentally ill' woman as a surrogate. The unnamed woman's lawyer said she was in no condition to be a surrogate and could not meaningfully consent to it. Following serious complications during the pregnancy, the baby died a few days after birth, leaving the mother with 'devastating emotional harm,' said her lawyer. He also accused the clinic of failing to carry out 'the most basic psychological screening and safeguards that could have protected her.' It later emerged that Dr McNichol had been reprimanded by Florida's Board of Medicine in 2024 after an inspection of the clinic uncovered various violations, including the failure of its equipment to 'meet current performance standards' and 'inappropriate sterilization techniques.' Dr McNichol faced at least two other lawsuits, accused by a male patient of ruining the sperm that he'd had frozen and of using a 'severely mentally ill' woman as a surrogate The clinic's parent company IVF Life wrote to patients encouraging them to 'transition their care to CNY Fertility,' a new name for the same IVF laboratory and testing facility in Longwood led by Dr McNichol The clinic was also deeply in debt and, later that year, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection owing more than $900,000. Two months ago, lawyers for Score and Mills announced that they had found Shea's biological parents – identified only as 'Patient 004' – after focusing on a South Asian couple who'd been using the clinic at around the same time. Their discovery naturally made the issue even more complicated as there were now two couples who both had their own claims to the little girl. However, Florida law was hazy on the crucial question of who had the stronger claim. As is so often the case, the law had failed to anticipate technological breakthroughs. Tiffany and Steven had raised Shea from birth and they were the only parents she had ever known. But the other parents had invested their own hopes for children in the same clinic – even if she had been born by another mother, Shea was biologically entirely theirs. Then, in a court filing this month, it was revealed that Score and Mills had 'come to a mutually devised custody agreement' with Patient 004 that recognizes Score and Mills' rights as the 'permanent custodial parents of their daughter.' No additional details were provided, although Rob Marcereau, an attorney representing Shea's biological parents, made clear his clients were forced to accept a settlement that wouldn't have been their first choice. 'The laws in this country, and in Florida, favor the parents who actually give birth to a child, so it would have been an incredibly uphill legal battle,' he said. He added that 'if it was up to my clients and if they had the choice, of course' they would want to keep Shea, who is now six months old. However, after weighing up various factors – including the emotional toll of fighting a court battle and the simple fact that the child had already spent months bonding with Score and Mills - they made what Marcereau called the 'heartbreaking decision' not to fight for full custody of a child they desperately wanted to have - and know is biologically theirs. 'It would have been an incredibly uphill legal battle and they just didn't feel that that was going to be what was in the best interest of Shea,' he said. Marcereau said the couple, who wish to remain anonymous, 'intend to remain a part of this child's life, while recognizing the impossible situation that both families have been placed in, through no fault of their own.' In a statement, Score and Mills said they were committed to fostering 'a relationship of friendship and trust' with the biological parents. Tiffany and Steven had raised Shea from birth and they were the only parents she had ever known Lawyers for Score and Mills found Shea's biological parents, a South Asian couple who'd been using the clinic at around the same time Score and Mills came 'to a mutually devised custody agreement' with the parents that recognizes Score and Mills' rights as the 'permanent custodial parents of their daughter' Circuit Court Judge Margaret Schreiber expressed support for the agreement, saying: 'I'm glad the parties have reached an agreement while this child is relatively young.' As for the doctor responsible for the terrible blunder, the Daily Mail discovered earlier this month that he is still treating patients out of the same Florida office. Dr McNichol, 63, insisted it was different now as he was only an 'employee' of the new clinic, CNY Fertility. 'These couples take their life savings, they sell their houses, they make tremendous sacrifices to have a child,' he said blithely. 'And when something like this happens, it is horrible. It's absolutely horrible. Not only do you let yourself down, you let your staff down, you let the couple down.' However, he suggested the 'error' in the case of Shea was down to the laboratory staff. Despite the large number of Americans who use IVF to have a baby, such cases as the Florida one have so little legal precedent that rulings on almost identical circumstances can go either way. Last year, a Georgia woman, Krystena Murray, sued a fertility clinic after she gave birth to a boy conceived through IVF who turned out not to be genetically hers. And as in the Florida case, she is white and her baby is dark-skinned. However, a court this time sided with the biological parents and, after five months spent bonding with the child, a distraught Murray had to hand him over to them. Legal experts say that the law surrounding IVF affords little protection to the patients – medical practitioners aren't held responsible for errors and safety violations in the same way they are in other areas of medicine - and so cases rarely make it to court. Astonishingly, there is no established process to make a legal claim when an embryo is lost or swapped. Likewise, embryology labs aren't subject to federal inspection in the way other medical facilities are. While countries such as the UK have a regulatory authority dedicated to policing fertility clinics, most US states don't require them to have a special license to operate. Although IVF baby mix-ups are thought to be rare, the number is fast increasing – along with other foul-ups such as embryos, eggs and sperm getting lost or destroyed – in line with a burgeoning fertility industry. One NBC News study last year found more than 300 lawsuits filed from 2019 to 2024 alleging that embryos, eggs or sperm had been lost, destroyed or swapped. Of these suits, 82 related to alleged human error and 13 involved claims of swapped embryos, eggs or sperm. Most of the rest concerned defective products or equipment. Meanwhile, business is booming. From 1996 to 2022, the number of babies born via IVF and other assisted reproductive technologies more than quadrupled while the number of fertility procedures shot up more than sixfold. The US fertility industry is now estimated to be worth at least $6 billion a year. Last year, a Georgia woman, Krystena Murray, sued a fertility clinic after she gave birth to a boy conceived through IVF who turned out not to be genetically hers However, a court this time sided with the biological parents and, after five months spent bonding with the child, a distraught Murray had to hand him over to them Dr McNichol told the Daily Mail: 'Most doctors can come home at the end of a difficult day, and say to themselves, 'Wow, I saved a life today.' As a reproductive endocrinologist, I can go to work and say, 'Hey, I started a life today.' The IVF industry counters that mistakes are no more common than in any other field of medical science. But critics say that many industry protocols designed to reduce errors aren't federally mandated. Over the years, evidence has grown that some doctors are using their own sperm to impregnate patients. Although it has happened in the Netherlands and Canada, ten out of 12 cases took place in the US, a 2019 study revealed. Indianapolis infertility specialist Dr Donald Cline pleaded guilty in 2018 to two charges of obstruction of justice after 61 people said that DNA tests had confirmed him to be their father. Supporters said Cline didn't want to disappoint patients by providing sperm that didn't work. Some see a narcissistic so-called God Complex in these doctors determined to spread their seed. Dr McNichol claims to have more modest ambitions. 'Most doctors can come home at the end of a difficult day, and say to themselves, "Wow, I saved a life today,"' he told the Daily Mail. 'As a reproductive endocrinologist, I can go to work and say, "Hey, I started a life today."' It would help, however, if he started it in the correct family. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.