Quick question re IVF and second children

[hummusscot]

Pretty sure of the answer, but just want to clarify. My DP and I are TTC and are likely to end up needing IVF due to problems. Am I right in thinking that if we get IVF on the NHS for one child, we'd have to go private if we wanted a second? We've always hoped to have two (although at this point we'd just be happy with one baby please!!) and this was something that cropped up when we were talking about it earlier.

Yes once you have a child the nhs will not help you with a second. If you have any frozen embryos from your NHS cycle then you can pay to use them, paying for a FET is much cheaper than a fresh cycle. We went abroad for our second child as ivf much cheaper there. Good luck x

@Scottishgirl85 is correct - if you have frozen embryos then it is a lot cheaper. I've recently paid £1200 total (treatment plus medication) for an FET after having my first child on the NHS (sadly this FET didn't work but I have one more embryo left so will pay the same again in a couple of months).

This is really helpful, thanks! So in that case it's worth paying the extra to freeze embryos.... interesting and noted.
@Scottishgirl, where abouts did you go abroad for IVF?

Ooooh another question, can you freeze the embryos on the NHS or is that extra £££?

I haven't had to pay anything for storage of embryos and mine were originally created in March 2015.
And yes you definitely would hold onto as many embryos as possible! The clinic will
provide advice on the quality of each and what is worth freezing. Sadly, some people don't have any to freeze after treatment so unfortunately there are no guarantees.

I believe paying to freeze embryos depends on the area you live in, and what your local CCG defines as a 'cycle'.

Thanks both! Yes I've heard it is a bit of a postcode lottery.

It really is. I can absolutely recommend Fertility Network UK if you are in the UK and need any support - they're fantastic and have provided my husband and I with lots of support.

Thank you @Woolfrai, I'll have a google :)

No NHS Trusts would pay for a second child attempt.
To find out how many cycles etc you'd get (if any) for a first child attempt, have a look online for your local CCG guidelines. It's usually very clearly laid out (how many fresh cycles, how many frozen transfers, etc).
There are also other restrictions usually to do with age, weight, lifestyle factors (smoking), hormone levels, etc as to whether you'd qualify.

Can't imagine an IVF clinic not freezing embryos if they're decent. I think often the NHS funding might cover them being frozen for a specific time period (e.g. one year), because it's assumed your treatment would be over this period. After that, you'd get the option to continue paying an annual storage fee, which I believe is usually anywhere from a couple to a few hundred quid.

A lot of it comes down to the idiosyncrasies of your funder as to what is and isn't paid for so I'd get your hands on the guidelines as soon as poss :)

For us we had 4 good quality frozen embryos from one cycle. So far - two embryo transfers and two babies! We are luckier than I ever thought possible.

We paid:
Nothing for first cycle including first FET (was a freeze-all cycle with no fresh transfer)
After a year of free storage, £500 to store the remaining embryos for 5 years
£950 to have a FET which has resulted in our second pregnancy.
Any further FETs would be around the same, approx £1000.

I think most areas are the same but it will vary. If you can get some frozen embryos from one cycle that is a really good outcome because you gives you additional chances at a relatively 'cheap' level compared to many thousands for another fresh cycle. Also a FET cycle is far less demanding on your body/time/waiting list (although not your emotions!) Your own consultant will go through everything and explain it to you.

Good luck

Thank you! Seeing the prices laid out like that is really helpful. There are other factors which mean we might not qualify for NHS treatment but it's good to have all the info etc. I know a bit about the criteria already and we went to an info evening, our board funds 3 IUIs and 3 IVFs. But not sure I can actually have the IUIs due to problems, which would mean 3 free cycles of IVF.
The storage for frozen embryos makes perfect sense.

Sorry to butt in, but would the NHS let you have fertility investigations and Clomid for a second baby?

Hummus, we went to Reprofit in Czech republic.

Cherry, yes in my area (Buckinghamshire) you can have investigations and clomid for second child. I (and my husband) received investigations prior to our private ivf for our second, and a friend has been given clomid despite having a child. I think it will depend on area.

Thanks @Scottish, that's the one I have bookmarked. What did costs look like for you? The website says to budget for roughly £3k for meds/travel/accommodation/actual IVF but trying to get more of an idea!

Yes we were £3500 for our fresh cycle including absolutely everything (flights, accommodation, drugs, scans in UK, meals when out there etc etc). We also took our toddler so that was an additional seat on plane etc.

Thanks :)

Cherry I have a dd with a previous partner. Trouble ttc with a new partner - the NHS funded mine and my partner's fertility investigations but won't fund clomid or IVF etc.

hummus do you mind me asking how long you were out there for? I looked at reprofit and the price is great but I read you had to go out there for 10-14 days and factoring accomodation and food in that bumped the price up massively

Sorry, I meant scottish!

We went night before egg collection and left day after 5-day transfer, so 7 nights total. It's incredibly cheap in Brno. The hotel was about £35 a night including breakfast for a family room and evening meals out were about £15 for the three of us, usually including dessert!

You could even leave day of transfer, so six nights total x