1st Long protocol ivf cycle fail

[Curri]

Hi I'm 39 years old and we have been through a long protocol donor sperm ivf cycle which failed, we got 6eggs and only 1 fertilised which was a top grade embryo which was transferred on day 3.We had our review consultation today and consultation said all my tests through that cycle was great for my age and has suggested that we choose different sperm, go for antagonist approach this time, and do icsi and also has changed some of our medication.

Has anyone any advice or been through anything similar to us?

[Elsidee11]

Hi Curri. Sorry to hear, hope you’re ok. I’ve experienced something similar. We had 0 fertilisation one round and also 1 egg fertilise another round. My tests were also good.

Were all your eggs mature? Did they discuss calcium ionophore? I don’t know a lot about donor sperm, but would assume it should be good quality? And using ICSI should pick the best sperm.

We changed my protocol and added calcium ionophore (AOA) x

[Curri in reply to Elsidee11]

Yes all 6 eggs were mature. We have no idea about all the ins and outs of all the tests.We are very nieve to this all.

The cost of all this is ridiculous and we are very nervous about going further into debt which possibly nothing at the end like last time

[Elsidee11 in reply to Curri]

It’s devastatingly expensive with no guarantees 🥹 it’s a tough old journey.

I think always trust your consultant but if you’re unsure, a second opinion is good. We went from 6 eggs first round with 1 fertilise to 18 eggs 3rd round and 11 fertilise - so you can definitely turn things around. I’m just not sure about the donor sperm, I wonder if anyone else had has fertilisation issues with donor sperm? Did they say the sperm was poor quality?

Maybe research calcium ionophore - it’s not an expensive add on in the grand scheme of things. X

[Curri in reply to Elsidee11]

Thank you for replying and your advise. Will definitely check that link out.It's a roller coaster with lots of ups and downs that's for sure.

Really hope everything works out for you 🥰

[Elsidee11 in reply to Curri]

Thank you ☺️ Also, just wanted to add, we moved to ICSI for second round even though husbands sperm was good quality and still had fertilisation failure from 13 eggs, which was a huge huge shock. IVF really is full of surprises. 🥹

Wishing you all the luck in the world for your next collection xx

[Curri in reply to Elsidee11]

Am sure that was just so crushing. It's very tough all this.

I think we will give it 1 more try then let it go.

It's so hard to overcome the heart ache if it fails

[Elsidee11 in reply to Curri]

It’s just crap there’s no guarantees. Every round is different though and every person/case is different. all it takes is one ❤️ keep positive.xx

[Elsidee11 in reply to Curri]

cuh.nhs.uk/patient-informat...

[Kitkat10]

hi Curri,

It’s worth asking them about the donor sperm quality as it seems strange to recommend different sperm? The embryologists are supposed to assess quality before they use it to fertilise eggs so it seems strange that now they suggest a change?

I used donor sperm and had 50% fertilisation rate which is very likely to be due to my egg quality as I was 41. With donor Eggs, the fertilisation rate was 80% with the same sperm.

Sperm donors have to be very good quality to be eligible so it’s also strange to suggest ICSI for fresh eggs but there must be a reason for this.

I found a short protocol much easier than the long down regulation one but often it’s clinic individual preference.

It’s also hard when they transfer on day 3 because you don’t know if the embryo didn’t implant or didn’t develop to blastocyst stage. My current clinic only do day 5 transfers which can be heart breaking if none of the embryos develop to day 5 but it does provide further information about their ability to develop so it narrows down where the problem was.

I’m sorry it’s been such a tough cycle for you but it is true that each cycle can be very different and unfortunately it can take a few transfers before success. It seemed there was no reason for the difference between by three failed transfer and the successful one. It was the same me and the same donor sperm yet the results from each cycle were quite different. I hope you can get some answers at your review 🍀 keep going, good luck x

[Curri in reply to Kitkat10]

There was no issues with the sperm as it came from sperm bank and was mot 10 good quality. The sperm just seems to have not been a match to my egg's for some reason.

[Kitkat10 in reply to Curri]

Yes, I think you’re right. Good luck with everything going forward x

[Itisajourney in reply to Kitkat10]

Hi all strong ladies! can I ask you what health matters should we consider when choosing donor sperm? It is a completely new world for us and would appreciate some support! Thanks