IVF and embryos

[Placey]

My son and his wife are having difficulty conceiving and have been offered IVF - but they can't seem to cope with the idea of discarding embryos. I know they desperately want children - please please, does anyone know of a clinic where fewer embryos are fertilised and no viable ones are discarded - if I could have a baby for them myself I would.
Placey

They aren't usually discarded but frozen for the couple to use in thd future.

I'm having natural IVF at Create. If your DIL ovulates naturally, this would be an option. Only the egg naturally matured is collected and then put together with the man's contribution, so you get one egg, one embryo per cycle usually (it is possible to naturally produce more than one - that's how you get non-identical twins). Success rates are lower as you are not playing the numbers game and getting a year's worth of eggs out in one go, but it might be an option to overcome their ethical objections. All IVF used to be done this way until they discovered that by using drugs they can get loads of eggs in one go. Now only a minority of clinics offer it. I found Create and CRGH in London, but I am sure there are others. I was happy to go with Create and so stopped looking.

I would add that viable embryos are not usually discarded - they are frozen, as Augusta mentions. However, some clinics seem to be really quite fussy about what they will freeze so you could argue that in those cases some embies that might be viable have been discarded.

It might also be worth them asking if only a few eggs could be fertilised and therefore no 'spare' embryos created, and remaining eggs frozen before fertilisation. Some clinics will offer this, but this would be private only. If they are eligible for NHS funding then this protocol is unlikely to be funded.

The 'gentle' or low stimulation IVF as mentioned above does sound like the best way forward for them if they have ethical issues around embryo use.

Thank you all so much. They are actually living in London so Create and CRGH could be an option. Please could you let me have an address?
Can't thank you enough for your understanding.

placey

Google is your friend! Here is the Create website: www.createhealth.org/

They have sites in Harley St and Wimbledon. Egg collection and embryo transfer are always done at Wimbledon but you can have the other appointments at Harley St.

I don't have details for CRGH but it was easy enough to find on the internet when I looked.

Thank you again. I do hope there's a happy outcome for you - and for us. It's easier to have the website address given..I did wonder if I would ever be able to find this thread again!

placey