ARGC

[R55]

Hello All

Im 40 and have been TTC for about 9 months now. I’m considering IVF with ARGC and wondered if anyone could shed any light on how they are and any recent pricing info? Additionally how long it took to get an appointment/ treatment? I heard there’s a waitlist?
Thsnks x

@Ttc91 I think it has been more tailored so far, but I did specifically choose Dr Mavrelos because there seemed to be the most mention of specialising in Endometriosis. I had a virtual consultation with him and then a scan in the monitoring month before, as with everywhere I don't think you necessarily see your Dr that often but they are the person devising your plan etc (I'm still in the stims stage so it's all ongoing). I don't know if any others have their own secretary but that has been a really great addition, it's tricky because obviously you don't want to spend £250-ish a time on consultations with different people to find who you think would be best for you!

The cost is for a FET cycle but within that there have been some things that not everyone will have to have. For example the scan that I had before included a dummy transfer and various other things and was in a different clinic on Harley St. This was £700 (an expensive hour) but I was happy to have had it done before starting because of my own quite complicated track record. There is also the (approx, this is from memory) £3500 cost of PGTA testing, again that's not for everyone, as well as FET being a longer process in general. I also had some of the screening tests done there which again is an extra expense but after waiting for 3 months for GP results last time I just didn't have the time to waste. As for medication for stims we got 2 different quotes, one £350 less that the other - so that was around £1250 I think, but since then there have been 3 additional medications that I've had to get directly from the clinic for various reasons so I think that is going to be closer to £2000 in total.

I can still qualify for some of the Access fertility packages though not all due to age-basically I don't think they allow batching, so we would have to exhaust all the FE's before we could use the second round with Access Fertility, I don't think it would include the PGTA testing (though I may be wrong). If we don't get many embryos we may try and do another collection to make the most of the PGTA testing (it's the same price for a certain number of tests) before any (finger crossed) transfers. In short (it's very complicated, there's a few other reasons...) I don't think it would benefit us in the way it might do other people, but it could be really helpful. Maybe try and get a really clear sense of what it does/doesn't include because I imagine there will be a few thousand on top / might be some limitations etc.

Not sure if that makes sense but hope it was helpful! Love to everyone on here xx

@Ttc91 to be honest having been at both Crgh and Argc, there isn’t much between them and I am not finding the costs in Argc significantly more. It will change if I ever got pregnant because their pregnancy monitoring etc adds costs. But overall I have found the prices pretty equivalents. Cycles go int about 10000-14000 in both places. It depends, if it’s structure, pre agreed protocols and not having to come into the clinic all the time then CRGH is the right choice (particularly if you want to test embryos). If you want daily monitoring more personalised approach (it doesn’t typically change much compared to Crgh - just feels more reassuring) then Argc is better. But access to clinic and being near to it becomes very important as it’s a demanding place. I have personally slightly preferred the experience in Argc just because of the monitoring and responsiveness. I haven’t had success with either clinic yet!

@Ttc91 I am seeing Dr Seshadri at CRGH and so far I have found her wonderful. She has her own secretary who I generally contact if I want to speak to her. Aside from my first consultation in November I haven’t had to pay for any other consultations because each time you have a pregnancy loss CRGH provide a follow-up with your consultant free of charge which is a nice thing to do under the circumstance and I’ve had 2 since December.
I’ve also found her very empathetic and understanding, and having seen a number of Gynaecologists for my recurrent miscarriages she’s the first person that I’ve spoken to who I felt really listened.
If you have any questions let me know.
Wishing everyone the best for the year ahead and hope you all have a positive outcome very soon xx

@NilesandFrasier thank you so much for all of the detailed information - it is so helpful!! Hope your stims is going well - let us know how you get on ! Fingers crossed for some good results.
@Sarahk20000 I have heard argc are the most attentive in terms of very close monitoring which can only be a good thing - hoping you have lots of luck there!
@stilltrying2022 thats so great to hear some good feedback on dr Seshadri - it’s so hard to pick a consultant from a list online so I’m really glad to hear a positive review!

I actually had a free initial advisory call with Argc and Crgh this week. Argc lasted 5 minutes and the nurse wasn’t very helpful unfortunately. Crgh lasted over half an hour with a consultant who talked us through the entire process which has given us so much more confidence so we have chosen to go with them - first consult will be in April!

@NilesandFrasier I was wondering if you were doing embryo batching at crgh, and if so if you wouldn’t mind sharing how long it would take and if you were doing b2b stims? Many thanks

@stilltrying2022 I'm not necessarily batching though we spoke about it (other people may know better on here- is it something you decide as you go along?) I'm waiting to see how this round of stims go, because of the expense of PGTA testing (and the price including up to a certain number of embryos, I think 6?) it may make sense to do another round of stims first, to have a good number to test. At my last clinic I had a disaster egg collection (apparently the trigger didn't work?!) so they said they would just do it again as part of the same plan but with my cycles etc that was about 2 months later (though in the end 4 months later because I got Covid and then my husband had to go away for work, brilliant). I think someone else on here mentioned how insanely long everything can take, generally no one's fault just the whole 'monthly' part of this nightmare!! That's just my experience so far, not sure that's helpful!x

Ah ok, thank you, that’s really helpful.
I agree, I’m finding the whole ‘monthly’ waiting a nightmare… I’m on this nightmare cycle where every few months I have either a miscarriage or biochemical pregnancy, then have to wait 1-2 months before trying again and then the same thing…it’s been awful for the last 3 and a half years since I was 36 and I’ve just turned 40. I just had a round of OI and had another biochemical pregnancy and now have to wait a month which was a shock as I wasn’t expecting I’d have to wait a month again (I know that’s silly, I should have known, but with all the waiting I’ve done over the years it was hard to digest), just waiting and doing nothing until I can try anything, same cycle again. My consultant wants me to do another round of OI but if it fails it will be nine before I can do anting again, so I’m wondering if we should just try IVF, and if we do she suggested batching and PGTA so I was wondering how long it all takes. Not sure how many more times I can go through these losses. Hope your stims going well x

@stilltrying2022 I'm so sorry to hear of your loses, that sounds just horrendous. I hope you have a positive experience at CRGH, I have so far although I'd say you still have to keep on top of some things (like every clinic) just checking the plan aligns with what your specific Doctor has suggested etc.
Funnily enough I think we are exactly the same age and have been dealing with this over exactly the same time span, I can't really remember how I felt before, it's so all-consuming. I really hope you make progress soon, we all know you can't be half pregnant but sometimes a new approach can feel a bit like progress or recognition at least x

Yes…you’re right a new approach is at least something. Feeling helpless and waiting and feeling like you’re doing nothing is quite difficult I find, I am still very hopeful, although scared, and each loss makes it harder to bounce back. It is all-consuming :(
Would you mind if I ask how long you expect it take in terms of your stims and the PGTa and then what I assume is the FET? Thanks so much for all the details you’ve shared so far, it’s really been really helpful x

@stilltrying2022 I'm not entirely sure- will keep you posted. One thing that has been the case for me in the past (but might not be for everyone) is a degree of down regulation before transfer because of endo. I think the whole run time-wise has been observation month with some medication, stims cycle, FET either next cycle or the one after, depending on above. Obviously if it's a fresh transfer it's much quicker but you can't test them. Will update when I know more, I've done this twice already but I think I've slightly blanked it out each time!😵‍💫

@NilesandFrasier thank you. Good luck, keeping everything crossed for a positive outcome for you ✨

@NilesandFrasier hope you’re well. I was wondering if you had any suggestions of the best place to get medication? I noticed in a previous post you had said you had found somewhere where the cost was £350 cheaper, so just wanted to ask, thank you

@stilltrying2022 CRGH suggested the fertility medication centre based on Wimpole st and fertility 2U, fertility 2U were unexpectedly cheaper- perhaps trying to be more competitive these days? They both got back with quotes pretty quickly if you need to compare. I didn't have time to research anywhere else as it was pretty time sensitive at that point!

@NilesandFrasier brilliant thanks so much!

Hello, I was wondering how ppl were getting on at crgh, and if anyone is doing embryo batching? If so, I was wondering what happens after the first round and the timing? I’m going through my first round of stims now, due for egg collection any day now I think, and am meant to be doing b2b batching, but I’m unclear what happens after egg collection. I’m getting a bit worried as I’m meant to be travelling ovs for work end of may/ June and concerned the timing isn’t going to work out