Donor eggs here or abroad?

[Sian_K]

Hi all, I’ve just had my follow up after a failed round of IVF. Due to my poor ovarian reserve they only managed to get one egg. Today I was told my only option is donor eggs or adoption. There is a 2 year wait for donor eggs with my current clinic. We have been trying 7 years and another 2 years seems like a lifetime of headache. Had anyone looked at going abroad for donor eggs? Or is it worth looking at other clinics in the UK?

[Hidden]

Sorry to hear you are having a difficult time

There are three key things to take into account when thinking UK vs abroad with donor eggs:

- Cost. UK can be a lot more expensive than overseas

- Anonymity - overseas donors are anonymous. In the UK the child could trace their genetic mother if they wanted to age 18. This was an important factor for my partner who didn't want any child we had not know who their genetic mother was if they wanted to find out.

- Timescales - traditionally overseas can get you going more quickly

However on the timescales, I am with a clinic in London who tend to match you with a donor within 3 months. The timescales depend if you are thinking of using an egg bank (where reserves are low at the moment due to covid so long waits) or live donor rounds - where you get paired with someone. The delays are less with the second option but that is subject to your requirements and how fussy you are in terms of what they look like etc.

Good luck x

[Purple276]

Hi Sian,

So sorry to hear your round was unsuccessful. I also have low ovarian reserve and gave it a few rounds where we only got 1 or 2 eggs and luckily did make it to transfer but never stuck.

We moved onto Donor eggs as our clinic does have a frozen egg bank and took about 3.5 months to get access but was about 6 months from adding ourselves to the waiting list to eggs being defrosted and fertilisation. Like Daisy says you can do a fresh donor round too where you are likely to get more eggs, better rate of blasts from eggs but more expensive but we found a frozen match before a fresh one came up.

I'm now in my 2ww and we have 2 frosties so definitely feel pleased we moved forward with this option. I'm unsure if worked but having younger eggs must make a huge difference and give us the opportunity for me to still carry a child so I'm forever grateful that women are willing to donate eggs.

I might have gone abroad but didn't want to risk it with covid issues plus I like that we have a message from the donor and any child we have can find out their genetic origins.

Hope that helps and feel free to DM me if you want to learn anymore about my clinic and experience.

Take care and good luck 😊

[JA-fnuk Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK]

Good advice in the previous post - for more info try hfea.gov.uk it has an excellent page on donor eggs here & abroad also take a look at Donor Conception Network dcnetwork.orgWishing you well with your future treatment

Janet

[M_fox]

With our NHS clinic (private funded) they only partner with a Spanish fertility service. They match you with a donor on all aspects. We were really impressed by how well it was run and the information available. Our nhs clinic supported all tests and scans ahead of travelling for transfer and when we came back.

As others say, our donor can’t be traced as it’s anonymous but you get the opportunity to speak to a councillor who can advise on options to support your decision. For us it was the only way. Good luck xx