The Step by Step Process Of Egg Donation
Thank you for your interest in egg donation. Since 1988, The Fertility Center of Las Vegas has helped thousands of couples in conception through egg donation. If you are reading this it means you are interested in helping a loving couple achieve their dream of parenthood by donating a precious gift – your eggs.
We want you to feel very comfortable through the process of egg donation. If you should have any questions or concerns at any time during the egg donation process, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Initial Screening
- You will be asked to complete a detailed online application pertaining to your personal and family history including personal questions. Please answer these questions truthfully and completely.
- You will be asked to provide pictures that you feel best represent you. We need recent face shots of you with no filters, a few baby/childhood pictures of yourself, and recent full body pictures. These pictures assist the recipient couples in choosing a donor that is similar in physical characteristics. You will not be judged on these pictures. Please make sure the photos are good quality (no photocopies or app filters please). We will retain the submitted photos for the online egg donor database to be viewed by potential recipients.
- Once your application has been accepted, you will undergo a transvaginal ultrasound and bloodwork in order to determine how many potential eggs you have.
- Our staff will ask you questions mandated by the FDA to make sure you are eligible to become an egg donor.
- We will walk you through the IVF process and give you forms that discuss the process of egg donation.
If everything is within normal limits you will be cleared to become an egg donor. You will then be entered into our donor pool for selection by a recipient. Recipients will only be given access to view the photos you have submitted along with your personal and family history. Recipients will not have access to your name, address or any other identifying information. Once you have been selected by a recipient, you will be ready to proceed with the process.
Second Set of Screening Tests
The next step is to undergo a second set of screening tests. It is important to understand that these tests are expensive and once you agree to become an egg donor you must be compliant and proceed through egg donation process. If you decide to back out of the contract prior to egg retrieval, you will be held financially responsible for the second set of screening tests (listed below).
- Physical exam with the doctor including vaginal cultures
- Drug Screening
- Chromosome Analysis
- Genetic Counseling
- Psychological Evaluation
- FDA Physical Exam and blood work
- Hormone Testing and general blood work
The IVF Process
Typically, we will have you begin taking a birth control pill prior to the start of IVF so that we can control the timing of your menstrual cycle and allow us to sync your cycle with that of the female recipient. The IVF department will provide you with an IVF schedule and order all of the medications that you will need. It is important that although you will be given a schedule, you will need to be flexible because this schedule can change according to how your body responds to the medications. In order to obtain multiple eggs for donation, you will be required to take medications that will stimulate your ovaries, mature your eggs, and prevent premature ovulation. These medications include:
- A GnRH agonist (such as Lupron) and/or a GnRH antagonist (such as Ganirelix)
- Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) and/or Human Menopausal Gonadotropin (HMG)
- Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG)
Throughout the IVF process you will undergo multiple ultrasound examinations and blood hormone level tests as needed to monitor your progress before and during the stimulation of your ovaries. It is important to refrain from heavy exercise during this time and do not get overheated. Patients going through IVF typically take these medications for 10-14 days before the eggs are mature and ready for retrieval. When the eggs are mature, they will be retrieved using a transvaginal ultrasound guided needle aspiration technique that takes approximately 15-25 minutes. You will be sedated during this procedure and will need someone to drive you home. You will recover in the office for approximately 1 hour and then go home to bed rest for the remainder of the day. You are free to return to work and normal activities the following day. We recommend that you do not perform excessive exercise until about 2 weeks after the procedure. Most patients do not have any discomfort during the process of IVF. The most common complaints are bloating and mild cramping. This will usually start to resolve a few days after the retrieval.