Advice on low AMH/high FHS - best fertility clinic in london

[LJ1979]

Hi - can anyone advise me on the best fertility clinic to try in london. I have very low AMH and high FHS. There are so many places and it’s really confusing. If anyone has any good recommendations / similar situation I would be really grateful if you could help me?

[Eggcellent29]

Hi there :)

I’m sorry to hear you’re having this problem - I am in a similar boat. I was 27 when I found out about low AMH/high fsh and am still on our ivf journey following a mmc from first round - so people who have come out the other side may have different views from me!

We decided to use donor eggs straight away due to the low chances of success with low AMH/high fsh.

Herts and Essex Fertility Centre are very good if you are considering an alternative family. They are just outside the M25 so not London, but well worth the journey!

Lemme know if you have any questions or I can help at all!

[Treacletoots]

What you want to look for in the results is 'by embryo transferred' all the clinics present the results in the way that is best for them. For example 'by embryo transfer' a clinic could have transferred multiple embryos to try and improve their rates, whilst leaving you at a higher risk of multiples. I. E. Twins, which sounds good but it is more dangerous and the HFEA who regulates IVF do not promote it as a positive.

Dont even think about any of the natural and mild IVF options. If they work, it's probable you would have conceived naturally. Oh and they often quote success rates after 3 or more cycles. Not one. Very expensive.

[LJ1979]

Thanks so much for this. Really useful advise. Where did you go in the end? X

[Treacletoots]

I used to work in IVF, not a patient I'm afraid. My advice would be to visit a few clinics you have shortlisted and go with the one you feel most comfortable with. The results don't vary dramatically between clinics so choose which you feel more at ease with.

[PrayingandHoping]

I would also recommend Herts and Essex Fertility. Their success rates are v good (higher than hfea average) and their care is excellent. Take their time to give you all the options and answer questions and not at all
pushy

Currently 18 weeks pregnant with our first cycle with them

[ArchMemory]

I’ll tell you what my GP said: we were going private (already had a child so no nhs treatment) and she advised to go to a clinic that also does NHS work. She reckoned they’d be up to date with the latest research.

We went to CRGH (before I knew my AMH was low as they didn’t / didn’t test for that on the NHS) and we were happy with them. I was told that while ARGC have high success rates they are very selective about who they accept for treatment (thus the high success rates) and also the treatment regime is very time intensive and difficult to combine with work. Treatment at CRGH was incredibly time consuming as it was so if what I was told about ARGC was true I can’t imagine how much more time I’d have had to spend in the clinic.

To counteract the advice above, we did have 3 rounds of natural ivf (no stimulating drugs, just the trigger shot to collect the one egg my body produced naturally - on the basis that with low ovarian reserve this was likely to be the best quality egg anyway). We were told that the chances of a single cycle succeeding were low and that did turn out to be the case - embryo quality was worse and worse each cycle and the 3rd cycle didn’t even get to embryo transfer. I was devastated at the time and I don’t like to think about the money we spent but I felt we’d truly tried our best with my eggs and I was able to move on knowing that emotionally (not to say financially) I wasn’t prepared to keep rolling a dice when we were so unlikely to ‘win’.

That’s the point where we weighed up whether to stop treatment or consider donor eggs. We decided to try donor eggs and we were successful first cycle. We were advised to transfer one embryo to reduce the likelihood of multiple birth and were happy to agree (the embryo quality was very good and I didn’t want to risk twins).

I was happy with CRGH - they got us our much wanted baby after all. Waiting times were often long though, although this may have improved as they have moved since we had treatment. I felt like the doctors and staff cared about me. I do think they pushed some experimental (and costly) treatment add-ons (eg endometrial scratch, steroid treatment) but they were also honest about the evidence base.

Good luck finding the right clinic for you.

[PrayingandHoping]

If it helps it was an NHS fertility consultant that recommended Herts and Essex to us

[LJ1979]

Great advise - thank you so much. X

[LJ1979]

Congratulations! Thank you for the advice x

[LJ1979]

Thank you so much x

[llamallamallamallamachameleon]

We used CRGH too based on our options at the time (nhs funded) and the best results published at that point out of those options.

We had an NHS hosp option on the list of approved places and I've only heard nightmares about tying to get through to them once you are a patient and general disorganisation.

I have nothing to compare to but CRGH were professional and thorough. Occasional issues with communication but nothing major. I've heard criticism levelled as feeling like you're a bit one in one out, but to me that is a reflection of how popular they are and it's a smallish central London clinic so yes you are aware of other people waiting for appointments. All clinicians were very nice. We had multiple rounds and they very much changed our treatment regimen from one to the next. We were fortunate that It worked for us and we have frozen embryos too which is an amazing bonus.

I hope it all works out for you :)

[LJ1979]

Thank you x

[Lemmecheck30]

I've done one round at ARGC and am currently at Evewell.

ARGC is intense and my experience is that they are not set up for those with low amh. They are great for people with immune issues or previous failed cycles elsewhere.

They do accept everyone but will start stims basis your FSH level as this is thought to indicate how well you will react to the drugs. I was border line so went for a 'natural' cycle and ended up with 2 embryos but they sadly didn't stick. At my follow up they were not very encouraging about going back. You tend to see different doctors each time due to the volume of people there it can feel like you are on a conveyor belt. They have their methods and stick to them.

At Evewell it's much more personalised approach. My FSH was 19 but my doctor ( who I see each time and is super friendly) waited to start stims later in the cycle. I was on course for 4 eggs but I unfortunately ovulated early despite taking all the right medication. This is very rare and I was very very unlucky. My doctor has come with a plan for my next cycle changing a few things - which i believe is not something ARGC would not do. With FSH 19 they would have turned me away for that month, and just monitored my normal cycle. This clinic has only been open since last year so I'm hoping they are pulling out all the stops to get results to get their reputation out there.

Happy to answer any questions about either place.

[LJ1979]

Thank you so much for coming back to me. Really encouraging to know. I’ve booked into Evewell for a open eve next week. Thanks again. Fingers crossed for you! Let me know how you get on x

[BellaD85]

@LJ1979 Hello! Sorry if this is too late and you have picked your clinic! We have gone with the London Women's Clinic in Darlington but there main clinic is in Harley Street.

First thing to say is that we are not rich!! I know there is a bot of a pre-conception with Harley Street! We chose them from a few clinic in our area (Yorkshire) because they have very high success rates and I also have low AMH and small volume ovaries. I'd had a terrible experience with the NHS so finding the right clinic was vital!!

They are an amazing bunch and really do make you feel like a person and not a number. I am now waiting for my EC on Monday, I've got 4 follicles and the consultant is very positive for us! It does happen I promise!! Give them a call, they have a website too if you want to have a look.

We decided to use Assured Fertility for a package due to having small volume ovaries and they have something for everyone and you feel like you are getting more for your money. Happy to talk about prices on a private message if you want to know the cost. We had no waiting around, had the first consultation in March and now well on my way!

Hope it all works out for you - best advice is find a clinic that tailors to your situation and believes. It makes all the difference to your mental state.

x

[LJ1979]

Hi thanks so much for this - really appreciate it. Would love to know more about assured fertility package - will send you separate message. X

[BethB123123]

Would love to know if people on this thread who had treatment at the evewell were pleased with the service there? I just had first appointment, with Montserrat, wondering whether to go ahead or go to Herts and Essex.

[ASW24988]

We are at Evewell, also with Dr. Montse Amodeo. She is friendly, takes her time to explain everything, is very reassuring and explores all treatment options. I think she is absolutely brilliant and everyone at the clinic as been absolutely kind and so accommodating.

We are still at the very beginning of our journey after being let down by the NHS for many years and being a healthcare professional myself, done a lot of research into it before committing to a clinic. We live in London, so I didn’t search for herts and Essex but I believe that Evewell and their approach is the right clinic for us.