For moms to be, the dream of starting a family takes shape differently. Sometimes the timing isn’t quite right due to career or educational goals. Or perhaps the right partner hasn’t come along. In these and other cases, the process of freezing your eggs, or oocyte cryopreservation, is an effective way to plan and time fertility. There are various reasons women choose to freeze their eggs, including:
- To delay childbearing for educational, career or other personal reasons
- They are facing cancer treatment (radiation or chemotherapy), surgery, endometriosis or are taking medicines for some rheumatologic or other diseases that damage or destroy ovarian function
- They have a family history of early menopause
The egg freezing process
Advanced egg freezing methods can expand a woman’s reproductive options and preserve younger, possibly healthier eggs. The ovaries are stimulated with hormones to produce multiple eggs. After roughly a week or two of hormone treatments, the eggs are retrieved and cooled to subzero temperatures to be thawed at a later date. Frozen samples can be stored for weeks, months or years, then transferred into your uterus or that of a surrogate mother.
Encouraging fertility success
What are the chances of having a baby later in life after freezing your eggs? According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the chance that a single frozen egg will lead to a live birth is about 2 to 12 percent. Which is largely why doctors recommend having more than one egg frozen — as many as two dozen — to maximize fertility success. Success is based on factors such a woman’s age and the quality of her partner’s sperm.
Considerations for egg freezing and fertility
Whether you want to carefully time your pregnancy or are concerned about your health, egg freezing may be an option for you. However, it’s important to consider the cost associated with the process and explore your financing options.
If you’re facing fertility challenges, it’s vital to determine the root cause with a fertility assessment. At New York’s Kofinas Fertility Group, our compassionate, board-certified doctors offer specialized experience in fertility diagnostics and solutions. For more than 30 years, Kofinas Fertility Group has been professionally and emotional invested in helping thousands of couples overcome infertility.
To learn more about our practice or to request an appointment, call 718-340-3611 or click here to use our online form.