IVF with donor egg - clinic recommendations

[Lynda1111]

Hi everyone, I hoped that I might get some advice/recommendations on the best clinics (either UK or abroad) using donor eggs. I am 44 years old, have had 6 cycles of IVF with my own eggs, one pregnancy and a recent miscarriage. We have decided to explore the donor route but I know very little about it. I want to find the clinic with the best sucess rates for women my age. It would also be really good to talk to anyone who has been/is in a similar position to me and has taken the donor route. I feel like I am getting lost in a massive amount of information when I look online and I do not know anyone personally that has been through this. Any help would be much appreciated! Thank you x

Hi @Lynda1111 sorry for your loss and struggles, it’s a very hard journey 😔 there is a ‘donor conception’ topic which may have more people able to help - I’m not yet at the donor egg stage but it is something I have looked into, from the research / conversations I have had Miracle IVF and Crown IVF in Cyprus appear promising, along with IB in Alicante (it’s likely I would go abroad for this)

Hi,
I'm waiting to have a FET with blastocysts created from donor eggs. Happy to answer any questions. We chose Portugal as was important to us to have open id - where any future child can access identifying info about the donor at 18. I have friends for whom this wasn't an issue and they used Brno and Barcelona with success. It means fewer visits though still a lot of tests and scans which all add to costs. But overall, it's been fine!

@Sara237 which clinic did you use in Portugal? Did you find they had a wide range of donors available or was there a waiting list? Also would you mind sharing how much you have paid? Trying to have ‘plans’ in place to help make this whole journey easier - hope your FET is soon!

@HopefulStars it's Ginemed in Lisbon. No waiting list and depend on criteria as to time of matching. We wanted blue eyes, fair hair same as us so were told it'd be longer as not common Portuguese features but they actually matched us within a few weeks. They use fresh eggs. It's was about 6000 pounds but I've spent extra on tests and scans etc.

@Sara237 thanks for the info, so many decisions to make, I had originally thought anonymised but I’ve done a U-turn on that and would maybe look at London Egg Bank - although deep down know I’ll do one more go with own eggs, despite low amh

Hi, sorry about your struggle. I'm 45 and had donor egg treatment last year at IB Alicante. I chose them because of high success rate and very good donor screening process. However, out of 5 blastocysts, had one miscarriage and the rest didn't implant. Turns out I have immune issues that IB didn't bother to investigate even when I asked multiple times. They only agreed to test after my last transfer failed and I had zero in the freezer. So basically I have to have another cycle at significant more cost than the cost of an immune test, not to mention the time we lost and the heartache and trauma we suffered.

My advice* would be to check for immune issues before you go for the donor treatment. If no immune issues, then you can choose any clinic you like. But if you have it, then only go where you will be treated for it as many clinics don't consider it to be an important factor. True, for the vast majority of women it is not relevant, but it is a deciding factor for many women like me and if you have it then no amount of donor eggs will give you success.

For our very last attempt, we have chosen a doctor who specialises in immune issues and going with the clinic he is working with, rather than choosing the clinic and then picking a doctor. Time will tell how we get on. All the best 🍀

• please also make sure there's no male factors. Male factors are almost always overlooked especially in a donor egg cycle but it still is important. This is another thing IB Alicante overlooked but I am glad the new consultant is not.

@Serendipity24 I’m so sorry to hear this, I have used IB in Madrid. I hope that your new clinic will be much more thorough and that your journey will finally bring happiness.

OP it’s an important point to know of any male factor issues to consider too.

Thank you @daisypizza for your kind words, much appreciated

Hi Lynda,
So sorry to hear what you’ve been through 😔 I’m 42 and whilst I have no issues getting pregnant, I miscarry each time between 6 annd 10 weeks. A lots of investigations, I was told there was no reason for the miscarriages other than the quality of my eggs (due to my age). We were advised by our consultant here in the UK to get in touch with Dr Castillo at Instituto Bernabeu in Alicante, Spain. They have been AMAZING! We went down the egg donation route and I am now 7 weeks 3 days pregnant following our first round of IVF. It’s still very early days but keeping everything crossed. I also feel more relaxed knowing that we have another 2 embryos cryopreserved (1 x excellent quality and 1 x good quality) should anything happen and a brilliant team supporting us should we need to go through another cycle.
I would definitely recommend them. Wishing you all the luck in the world 💚

@Mimes83 so sorry to hear your story. This journey is can be heartbreaking thank you for sharing yours.

Massive congratulations on your pregnancy 🩷 and for the clinic info. I will have a look at the clinic! Did you have to go to Spain for many appointments or was it shared with a clinic in the UK?

sending lots of love x

@Lynda1111 Thank you for your kind words 😊I knew it was never going to be easy given my age but I don’t think anything really prepared me for the massive highs and lows involved in reaching my dream of having another baby. I’m lucky enough to have a beautiful, healthy 21 year old but I just didn’t feel it was the end of my baby journey. In terms of getting to this point, I initially underwent a number of investigations under the recurrent miscarriage clinic. When no cause could be found, my husband and I saw a consultant privately at Care Fertility. They arranged a 3D scan and explained that whilst structurally everything was textbook, it confirmed that my ovarian reserve was extremely low and the chances of me having a baby using my own eggs was extremely small. After another consultation, egg donation was advised and our consultant suggested we contact Instituto Bernabeu. We initially had a video consultation with Dr Castillo. We attended the clinic once 6 months before the embryo transfer - I needed to have some additional blood tests and a mammogram (everything was half the price and organised in one day!). My husband had to leave a semen sample to be cryopreserved ready for the fertilisation of the eggs. He had already had a semen analysis performed in the UK which was normal. Care Fertility have been terrific …..they organised the medication required, administered the Prostap injection, performed any required bloods and scan to check my endometrial thickness before we flew out for the transfer (all at a cost obviously). We decided to spend a week out in Alicante to give ourselves a few days either side of the transfer which worked out well. I’d definitely recommend a video consultation with Dr Castillo in the first instance. It sounds as though you have been through so much already. I truly hope this path brings you the baby you deserve Xx