IVF London - Good clinics reference for over 40 IVF

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We’re a 42 year old heterosexual couple with unexplained infertility and just had an unsuccessful IVF cycle through the NHS at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. Sadly we only had one embryo frozen and had a transfer with embryo glue but sadly we had a negative pregnancy test.
We decided to give it another go privately but are finding it very difficult to choose which clinic to use.
I was wondering if anyone with similar circumstances has a recommendation of a London IVF clinic where they had a positive experience? Thank you in advance, it would really really help us. Any advice would be deeply appreciated.

I'd recommend pulling up prices (Access packages and multicycle deals) and going with wherever you'd be able to afford to do the most cycles near to you.

Each embryo at 42 has an approximately 1/5 chance of being chromosomally normal. You therefore ideally need to stockpile as many as possible in back to back cycles to try to beat the odds. PGTA can help to locate the normal embryos fast but if you are likely to make one blastocyst per cycle you may prefer to transfer everything.

Thank you @sirensong. I’m unsure if we should spend more money and go with a clinic that offers more testing including genetic or to go to a slightly cheaper clinic with less testing and potentially have more rounds. Do you have any recommendations of London clinics that you’d be comfortable sharing?

I have been at King's as a private patient and largely happy with them (I did back to back rounds with PGTA) but they are quite NHS with their approach - ie. they follow tried and tested paths not anything groundbreaking. Which is fine for most patients/ means you won't be taken advantage of, but it depends on your profile.

Did your round at Chelsea and Westminster provide any useful information about ovarian response/ protocol suitability? Try to get all of your records if you're definitely moving clinic.

I was with the Lister Chelsea, I'm late 30s but believe they do a lot with people over 40 and I found them willing to change things up/suggest something new as needed

Hello dear, sorry to hear that. There are many good options in London, I would have a speak to Seen Fertility and see how you get on from there. Perhaps have an initial consult with 2 clinics then decide

Thank you @YourTwinklyBear@Orangewillowand @sirensongfor all the recommendations. I’m concerned that at 42 my eggs might not be good enough quality and may need to have a more explorative approach. I have an appointment booked at Chelsea and Westminster (where we did a first NHS round) and one at ARGC. To answer @sirensongfrom our first round I got lots of folicles but only 5 eggs of which only 1 made it to blastocyst and that transfer didn’t work, but the only thing I was told was that they would suggest increase the initial doses but Somehow I expected that it would give them more insight than that……

I also did an ivf cycle at the C&W and only got 1 embryo and it didn't work. Have visited several other clinics since and got 11 embryos and then 8 embryos elsewhere. Would also highly advise doing the PGT-A testing which they don't offer at C&W becuase it could eliminate a lot of heartbreak knowing whether embryos are euploid (chromosonally normal) or not.

Thanks @AnnaKatherine . May I ask what other clinics did you visit and if you would recommend any?

I recently started at Avenues, near Euston. It's still early days for us, so I don't have a full picture of what they are like yet. They do claim to cater for women in their 40s and people with low amh. Our consultant has been very friendly and seems quite knowledgeable, but there are aspects on the admin side which could definitely work better.

I can’t recommend Colin Davis at the Evewell enough. He’s helped three women I know who are in their 40s to have children.

I’m seeing him. I’m 36 but have endometriosis which was missed by everyone except him. He did my endometriosis surgery last year and I’m doing my first embryo transfer with him tomorrow. He founded the Evewell. He’s quite unusual in that gynaecologists are either generalists or fertility focused - he’s not only a technically brilliant gynaecologist and but also a fertility specialist and I think this gives him an edge. He’s helped a few of my friends with complex situations and surgeries. He’s also got a really nicer manner, very professional but also empathetic and kind. Makes you feel heard.

He oversees all cases at the clinic as medical director but if you decide to see him you need to specify he’s the consultant you want to see

Good luck xxx

I had success with CRGH, I was late 30s when i started treatment and gave birth at 40. I was under dr Wael Saab, I would wholeheartedly recommend him.

We did 3 rounds of embryo banking with PGTA testing.

I second the recommendation for Mr Davis at the Evewell on Harley Street too.

I’m 41 and four years into our fertility treatment journey. We moved to the Evewell last year after being unhappy with the care we were receiving elsewhere. The approach with Mr Davis is completely different - we feel listened to, part of the decision making, and cared for. It was Mr Davis’ recommendation for further testing (with Professor Ramsay) into my husband that uncovered an issue with sperm DNA fragmentation.

I had my second egg retrieval at the Evewell just yesterday so can’t report on any success just yet, but using ICSI and zymot to counter the sperm issue, we’re off to a good start with 100% of the mature eggs showing signs of fertilisation (38 retrieved, 29 mature enough, 29 fertilised). We’ll see how we go from here!