INFORMATION FOR
EGG SHARE DONORS
Some women require eggs donated by another in order to get pregnant. There is currently a great shortage of egg donors. For that reason we are asking women who are about to undergo assisted conception treatment to consider sharing their eggs. It is possible to greatly reduce the cost of your IVF or ICSI treatment cycle in this way.
Not all women are suitable to be egg-share donors.
Egg share donors
In order to become an egg-share donor you must
· Be under 36 years on the day of egg collection
· Be within a healthy weight range, with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of less than 30
· Be a non-smoker.
· Have no personal or family history of inherited illness or disabilities.
· Have a normal Anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) level as assessed by a blood test. This is a measure of your body’s ability to produce eggs.
· Have negative results for screening tests for certain infections and for genetic diseases. See below.
If you are interested, please contact the appointments secretary on 01382 496475 and tell her you are interested in becoming an egg share donor. You will be sent an information pack and an appointment with one of our doctors. Once your screening results have been reported, an appointment will be arranged with our independent counsellor.
We will ask you a series of questions about your medical history, and answer any questions you may have. With your permission we will contact your GP for further details. A blood sample will be taken from you to perform some screening tests as well as to assess hormone levels.
Screening tests
The blood sample will be used to test for chromosomal abnormalities and common mutations for Cystic Fibrosis (CF).
We will also test both you and your partner for the following
· STDs such as syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhoea
· Hepatitis B and C
· HIV
It is important to bear in mind that, if a child is born disabled as a result of the donor’s failure to disclose defects about which she was aware, the child may be able to sue the donor for damages.
Consent
You will be asked to complete consent forms for the use of your eggs for your own treatment, and for treating another person, as well as freezing and storing any embryos created using your eggs.
You can change your mind about donating your eggs and keep them all for your own use, but for this you will be asked to pay the full cost of an IVF or ICSI treatment cycle. This must be paid before treatment goes ahead.
You can withdraw your consent to donate your eggs after they have been used to create embryos, at any time up until the woman receives the embryos at embryo transfer. This will include any frozen embryos that were created using the eggs which you donated.
You can state preferences regarding the use of your eggs, for example, the age of the recipient, or where she lives. We will try to take these into account wherever possible.
Egg share recipients
Recipients of the eggs may need them for a number of reasons, such as
· Age
· Ovarian failure or premature menopause
· Cancer treatments which may have made them infertile
· Hereditary disease.
We need to co-ordinate the sharer’s cycle with the recipient, and this may sometimes lead to delays of a few weeks in starting the treatment cycle.
How the eggs are shared
If eight or more eggs are collected, then they are shared between the donor and the recipient. If an even number of eggs is collected, each will receive half; if an odd number of eggs is collected, the extra egg is given to the donor.
If less than eight eggs are collected, splitting the number will not give a good chance of success to either the donor or the recipient. In this case you would keep all the eggs to yourself.
We make every effort to ensure a good response in terms of number of eggs, but this cannot be guaranteed.
Identifying information
The identity of the person receiving the eggs will be protected from you. The recipient may be given certain non-identifying information, such as physical characteristics, hobbies and interests if she requests it.
When a child reaches the age of eighteen they can request identifying information from the HFEA.
If you wish, you can find out if the recipient has become pregnant as a result of your donation.
Under the HFE Act, 1990, you will not be the legal parent of any child resulting from donation.
Costs
£1500 for IVF.
£1700 for ICSI.
These costs include drugs and are non-refundable.
Having these appointments does not mean you are obliged to become an egg-sharer.
Contact Numbers
Appointments secretary:
01382 496475
Monday – Friday 8.30 am – 4.30 pm.
Nursing staff:
01382 633835 –
Monday – Friday 8 am – 5 pm
Saturday and Sunday 8 am – 12 noon
Anne McConnell, Business Manager:
01382 632111
Monday – Friday 8 am – 5.30 pm