Egg Freezing
Women are born with all the eggs they are ever going to have. Each month in a normal cycle, a wave of follicles containing eggs are recruited, with one to ovulate & the others to be resorbed. We can stimulate & freeze these extra eggs, to improve fertility chances later in life.
Our ovarian reserve can be measured by a blood test called Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH), made by the pool of pre-antral follicles, or by a pelvic ultrasound counting the antral follicle count (AFC). As we age, both the number and quality of eggs decrease.
There are pros & cons of egg freezing. The advantages are freezing eggs if not currently partnered, or not wishing for a child immediately, to avoid age related decline.
Considerations are that a number of stimulation cycles may be required to build a pool of resources & that egg freezing is no guarantee of a live birth.
We will discuss all this with you, tailored to your situation.
FAQs
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We will explore your reproductive goals & plans for the future. The Australian & New Zealand Society for Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility (ANZSREI) 2019 Consensus Statement note that egg freezing can be a strategy to improve a woman’s longitudinal fertility potential & is an option that may provide future opportunities to conceive.
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Medical egg freezing can be offered prior to cancer treatment where chemotherapy, radiation and/or surgery can unfortunately damage delicate egg cells as a side effect of treating cancerous cells. Such appointments are urgent, as to not unnecessarily delay cancer treatment.
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The American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) in 2019 stated that ovarian tissue freeze was no longer experimental, particularly for pre-pubescent girls, who are yet to ovulate. Ovarian tissue freeze may also be an option for fertility preservation for adult women with cancer. This is a nuanced discussion we offer.
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Dr Violet Kieu is on the Melbourne IVF Donor & Surrogacy Committee. She can provide expert advice on the process of being an egg recipient or an egg donor.