Donor egg process?

[PseudoFred]

I'm such a nitwit. After several IVF cycles (2 m/c) our consultant suggested we consider DE due to my geriatric status. I already have DC from a previous relationship so using DE doesn't bother me. He handed us a business card for the UK DE coordinator and said to call them when ready to start. I stupidly assumed it'd all be done in the UK (with the DE magically appearing from abroad!) but now realise that of course, we'll have to go abroad for treatment.

The clinic he recommended is approx £10k and based in Cyprus but obviously you can get it much cheaper elsewhere. My question really is whether other UK clinics partner with those abroad so that you only have to travel for the sperm donation part and the embryo transfer? It's not immediately obvious having looked at several foreign clinics.

If there isn't a UK partner clinic, how many time do you have to go abroad per cycle? Is there a guide anywhere that sets out the process? I've looked on FF but cant find anything that sets it out in simple terms.

Also, any recommendations for clinics? I've seen that IVI Alicante is well regarded. Reprofit has a long waiting list apparently and Serum is run by someone who isn't a doctor so I don't fancy that one.

Hi,
You don’t need to use a clinic in the U.K. which is partnered with one of the clinics abroad. It would be cheaper and is really not much harder if you just contacted the clinic directly.

Most clinics abroad which have significant numbers of English speaking patients have a patient coordinator who is fluent in English and can help you navigate your way through things.

The clinic we used only normally only requires patients to go to give the semen sample and for the embryo transfer. The clinic usually freezes the sperm sample and then it can be used at a later date for fertilisation (I.e. you don’t have to be there at the time of the donors egg collection). The scans and blood tests prior to the embryo transfer were all done in the U.K. before we travelled for the transfer. The transfer was with a frozen embryo as the success rates are just as good with a frozen embryo as with a fresh one, but it’s much easier to plan the transfer with a frozen embryo and you get more notice of your transfer date.

Overall we would only have had to travel there twice for a day at a time for the entire process. As we have male factor infertility as well though my partner had to make a couple of extra trips to the clinic for repeat sperm samples, but this isn’t the usual case.

If you’re not keen on serum, I’d recommend looking into some of the other Greek clinics such as New Life and Embryolab- both in Thessaloniki and literally across the street from each other so if you do go there it’s very easy to visit both. The clinics in Greece tend to be cheaper than Spain and are very good.

But if you cut out a UK clinic surely you still have to pay to have scans etc in the UK?

Yes you do, but you can shop around and have the scans and blood tests where it’s cheapest and most convenient for you rather than at your clinic. From memory I think I only needed to have 2 or 3 scans and 2 or 3 blood tests in the uk during the cycle anyway. Also my uk clinic charged an administration fee of several hundred pounds to coordinate things and send results to the clinic abroad.

I had 4 cycles of failed IVF in the U.K. and then went to Serum in Athens for another donor cycle earlier this year and 3 week old DS is on my knee as we speak, I can't fault them. Was a fraction of what it would cost in the uk and we got a young proven donor and had enough good quality blasts to freeze too for a sibling all being well.

I'm an IVI Alicante fan! Pur UK clinic had at the time a partnership with them so all our initial scans drugs and trial tranger was done here. We flew out once for hubby to do sperm sample and then flew back again to have the transfer. Our second go was successful and we have an absolutely gorgeous 3 year old son. The total cost then was £
£10k x

Another IVI alicante Mummy here!!

They did for me what 3 clinics in the UK gave up on. They managed it first time!

4 years ago £9k for drug-free cycle, not including flights etc.

Hi everyone I've just doning my 1st cycle using donor eggs, at Manchester Fertility and there is no waiting list. I used Access Fertility 70% refund programme. If you opt to pay as you go per cycle is approx 9k (I think).

Have a gorgeous 2 year old, considering ED to create a second child, anyone else done this?

Hi can I ask where I start with all of this? Im british but speak greek. What is the actual process like? Are you under local or general anaesthetic or can you choose? How long? Has anyone given birth in Greece? What was it like? Also what scans and blood tests do I need?

Hiya. Firstly you need to choose a clinic. We used IVI Alicante but I've heard Serum in Greece is good. You will need counselling with your partner to decide if a DE is right for you. If it is you will get to choose or be matched with a donor. You can decide if you want a fresh embryo transfer or a frozen one. We had frozen as we didn't want to spend a week in Spain waiting to see if the eggs fertilized. We went back again twice for our transfers. You don't need any.local or general anaesthetic for the transfer. Mine were painless. You should get a trial.run first. Before transfer you will also be on drugs to control your cycle, and thicken your womb lining. You also will have progesterone pessaries afterwards. Hope this helps. We got our BFP on our second round. He's now 3!

Thank you, going at it as a single woman and someone offered to be my donor. Is this the same thing?