Egg Donation – The Facts

What is egg donation, and how successful could it be for helping you conceive?

Posted: 24 April 2009
by Suzanne Baum

Eggs from a donor are fertilised with your partner’s sperm in a laboratory dish and the resulting embryos are transferred to your uterus.

If you have been trying for some time and investigations into infertility have identified a problem with your eggs, you might consider egg donation.

The need for egg donation when you’re trying to conceive can happen for a number of reasons:

You may have no ovaries or ovaries damaged by cancer
You may be unable to produce your own eggs
You may have had an early menopause
You may be at risk of passing on an inherited disease

With egg donation, eggs from a donor are fertilised with your partner’s sperm in a laboratory dish and the resulting embryos are transferred (or implanted) to your uterus.

The downside to egg donation is that unless it is a friend or relative who is donating her eggs, there are very long waiting lists because of the shortage of people willing to donate eggs.

Counselling is often offered when you’re going through egg donation.

Egg donation has a success rate of between 25 and 40%.

assisted conception, egg donation, ovaries, embryo

So what do you think?

Sam Waterman
I’m Sam, aged 30 and I work in business development in York. But one of the more interesting facts I can share about myself, is that I’m to be an egg donor and assist couples who can’t have children without a little bit of help. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to share with you the ins and outs of what it means to be an egg donor; the practical side of the treatment, working with clinics and the personal implications of what giving eggs has meant for me. There were definitely some highs, some lows and some unexpected laughs along the way!

I’m a pretty helpful person; I like to get involved and make a positive difference if I can. I’ve given blood and been on the bone marrow list for years; because of this, I felt really surprised to realise I’d never given any thought to being an egg donor. But then it occurred to me; donating eggs was something I’d actually heard nothing about, not until I spotted an advert in the Guardian Sunday supplement one sunny May bank holiday and I immediately thought ‘I can help this couple’. Two years on I’ve donated to three couples and I’m about to help my fourth. Maybe I was a little more likely to want to help infertile couples, given that I’ve seen friends and family suffer terrible heart break with their journeys to have children. One friend has suffered multiple miscarriages and my cousin was infertile for many years with endometriosis. I remember feeling frustrated and upset that there was nothing I could do to help either of them and being exposed to their pain and desperation for a child really stayed with me.

When I became involved with egg donation, I read a lot of information on the National Gamete Donation Trust website, which was invaluable to me. A particular support was the Yahoo forum group set up for people who already had, or were taking an interest in, donating eggs or sperm. I signed up for the forum and was fascinated at the questions that came from potential donors and the responses they received from those members with firsthand experience. When the NGDT asked if I’d like to get involved with the Give Hope, Give Life campaign, I was thrilled. It feels good to give something back, because of the terrific information and support I received, when I was making my decision. Now I’m passionate about sharing my story and encouraging other women to consider donating their eggs. Given my involvement in egg donation was out of pure chance – an advert in a Sunday supplement – I want women to have a greater awareness of the campaign, what they can do to help and to ask themselves ‘is this something I could do?’. It was the right decision for me, as I’m sure it would be for many other women.
Read more about my story at www.altrui.co.uk/blog About 2 years ago

audrey1234
A woman that I work with donated her eggs (twins have since been born) and she said it was so painful and such a difficult process that she would NEVER do it again. Nor would she reccommend it to anyone. About 2 years ago

emma beasley
I went through 2 courses of IVF unsuccessfully but didn't find the process difficult or painful just a bit uncomfortable. I have since fallen pregnant naturally after 8 years of trying and am due in december. after all i've been through i have decided to donate my eggs next year to give other couples a chance of a little miricle!! About 2 years ago

Wendy F

I have thought of egg donation before, but as mentioned above the horror stories have delayed me making a choice. I am currently overdue with my 3rd and final child, and would like to make a decision soon after the birth so that I can donate if I decide to and then possibly look at a long term birth control method. I would welcome any details of your experiences, and that of husbads / partners, as my husband is worried how it will impact me emotionally, thus him and our children...

About 2 years ago

Egg Donation – The Facts

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