Context:

Matthew's father, who bore no resemblance to his parents, was unknowingly swapped at birth nearly 80 years ago, a fact Matthew discovered through DNA testing during the pandemic. Intrigued by discrepancies in family traits, Matthew's investigation revealed a mix-up at a hospital in 1946, where his father and another baby were mistakenly exchanged. Historical hospital practices before the introduction of wristbands made such errors possible, although they were considered rare at the time. Matthew's father passed away without knowing his true lineage, and Matthew decided not to contact the family of the man his father was swapped with, as they had not conducted DNA tests themselves. This case is one of several now being uncovered due to the rise in genetic testing, highlighting past hospital errors and their lasting impacts on families.

Dive Deeper:

• Matthew's father, born with brown eyes and black hair, was always joked about for not resembling his blue-eyed parents, which was later found to be due to a mix-up at birth in a 1940s hospital.

• During the pandemic, Matthew initiated DNA testing to explore his family history and discovered unexpected DNA matches, leading to the revelation that his father was swapped at birth with another baby in an East London hospital.

• In the mid-20th century, babies in hospitals were often mislabeled due to practices where newborns were removed from mothers and placed in nurseries, identified only by cards on their cots rather than direct tagging.

• Matthew's father, who lived his life unaware of his real parentage, died before Matthew could decide whether to inform him of the truth, choosing instead to leave him in peace.

• The rise in affordable genetic testing has led to more discoveries of such historical mix-ups, as seen in Matthew's case, with lawyers predicting an increase in similar revelations as people explore their genetic ancestry.