FET delayed to Day 26 of Cycle

[LuciaAndCarl]

Hi everyone, this will be my 3rd transfer (previous ones failed)

Started Estradiol 8mg on day 1 of my cycle

First Scan on day 10 showed my lining at 5.8mm (thinnest ever, two prior transfers I was at 6.3mm by day 10)

My clinic (based in Barcelona) asked me to continue to take Estradiol 8mg daily and redo the scan

Second scan on day 13 showed my lining shrunk to 5.0mm (I was in shock!)

They have asked me to add Estradiol parches and change them every 2 days and redo scan on day 20 of my cycle

If the lining is responding, meaning reaching at least 6mm, we would move ahead with the transfer on day 25 or 26

I am nervous as I feel we are pushing this very hard, not to mention 6mm cut off in Barcelona has always amazed me ! (In the US the cut off is 7mm)

Any thoughts on this? Has anyone experienced a similar situation such as FET on day 25+ due to lining not responding and had a positive outcome ?

[Shantelbgh]

I think it will be best to postpone your transfer if your lining is not thick I live in belguim and it’s also at 6mm .. my first transfer lining was 6.5 and it work but was a chemical second transfer 6mm and it failed .. this transfer lucky my lining is at 7.5 and I didn’t do anything different so it’s best to maybe wait and try next month .. better than doing the transfer and maybe it not sticking

[LuciaAndCarl in reply to Shantelbgh]

Hi Shantelbgh thanks for sharing your story! I have always thought the lucky number to be 7mm or above, but have never been able to reach it

What day of your cycle did you reach the 7.5mm? And just out of curiosity? What medications were you taking?

I am on 8mg estradiol pills and now estradiol patches since day 13

[Solo45]

I did and currently 11weeks. I was doing modified natural FET, first scan on day 11 and ended up having scans up until day 19 every one or two days. Initially lining was slow to profess and then it was less follicle. Similar to you, I had a day when follicle size seem to step back one day. Took trigger shot day 19, started progesterone day 21 and transfer day 26. I took vitamin E and did caster oil compresses to help lining and lots of water and yoga, cu down on exercise a bit. Not sure if any of it helped or just timingz only slight concern I would have is the length of time between your scans, I would expect more regular checks as things can progress quite quickly but I’m sure your clinic know what they’re doing. Best of luck with it!

[LuciaAndCarl in reply to Solo45]

Solo45 thank you so much for sharing your story and congrats on your positive pregnancy !! 💕 question! How thick was your lining on day 11 vs day 19 ?

[Solo45]

started at 5.9 on day 11, only 6.1 by day 13 and got to over 9mm by day 19.

[Someday_Bluesky]

Hi LuciaAndCarl,

I really struggled to thicken my lining with FET (medicated) and ended up transferring on CD33 after the clinic upped my oral oestrogen to 10mg/day and then added patches. I finally just made it to 7mm on CD28 (the clinic cut off at the time). I don’t think they would have let me go any later and I would have had to cancel. However, I’m so grateful it turned around at the last minute as I now have a 2 year old from that transfer. As long as your lining is looking good and expected (triple layer etc) and ovaries ‘quiet’ on your scan before you start progesterone there is every chance it can be successful even if it is a bit later in the cycle.

I’ve also had successful implantation with my lining being <7mm before transfer. We are currently trying for a sibling and doing a FET this time (started on 10mg/day oral oestrogen then, following the results from an early scan where my lining was only 5.5mm, added in patches) I didn’t respond as well and my lining only made it to 5.9mm (didn’t change after continuing medication for an additional week). However, thinking on minimum lining thickness has changed in my clinic (UK) in the years since I did my last FET and they hold much more importance on lining quality (i.e. looks trilaminar) and they said I was still ok to go ahead with the transfer. I’m now 12 weeks pregnant.

Like you I was a little unsure but ultimately glad I went with the advice from the clinic. What swayed it for me was that I knew I was someone that was never going to get a very thick lining (even for my fresh transfer with endogenous oestrogen I only got to 7.2mm) and thought if I cancelled this cycle and started again I would likely be in the exact same position just months down the line. It sounds like you have had good lining thickness in the past so your circumstances are different to mine, but it’s certainly possible to have successful implantation with a lining of 6mm. Wishing you the best of luck!

[LuciaAndCarl in reply to Someday_Bluesky]

Someday_Bluesky what a wonderful story! Stories like yours make me feel like this can also be possible for me.

Also, congratulations on the new baby 💕!!

My lining has always been trilaminar, just never above the 6.3 mm on day 10ish or so

I could have sworn CD 10-11 was the cut off 😂, I now understand if the first scan on CD 10-11 shows lining has not thicken enough there is time to make corrections to the the protocol, which gives me a little pace of mind.

Tomorrow is CD 20 for me and scan day, depending on the results our doctor will decide if we move forward or not with the transfer 🤞🤞🤞