Egg Donation

There are a selected group of patients that require Donor Eggs:

• Women with a fully functioning uterus but whose ovaries do not produce eggs due to premature menopause (this affects 1-2% of women under the age of 40);
• Women who have had their ovaries removed because of treatment for cancer, pelvic infection or endometriosis;

• Women whose ovaries have been damaged because of chemotherapy or radiotherapy;

• Women who were born without functioning ovaries due to a chromosomal factor such as Turner Syndrome;

• Women who have had poor ovarian responses to hormonal stimulation after many IVF attempts, failure of egg collection or poor egg quality;

• Women who have a high risk of passing on genetic disorders such as haemophilia, muscular dystrophy and Huntington’s chorea;

• Couples with recurrent miscarriages due to chromosomal abnormalities;
• Older women who have poorly functioning ovaries.

• There are selected groups of women who may consider donating their eggs either anonymously or specifically to known friends or relatives. All potential egg donors are made aware of the selection criteria adopted by Cyprus Hope IVF. These include:

  • Egg donors are anonymous and will not be known to the recipient couples (unless they bring their own donor). Under Cyprus legislation, the donor has a right to anonymity;
  • Egg donors are healthy women, between the age of 20 and 28;
  • There should be no family history of genetic or inheritable diseases;
  • No history or mental disorders;
    
    • No history of sexually transmitted disease, pelvic inflammatory disease or history of DVT or pulmonary embolism because of the increased risk of complications following egg collection.

All prospective egg donor candidates are screened in line with the standards recommended by the UK regulatory bodies such as HEFA and ASRM in order to avoid the risk of transmission of infectious diseases to the recipient and offspring and to avoid passing on genetic or inherited diseases.

Potential donors are screened for:

• HIV;
• Hepatitis B and C;
• Cytomegalovirus (CMV)
• Syphilis;
• Gonorrhoea
• Chlamydia
• Cystic Fibrosis
• Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF)
• Sickle cell (in appropriate ethnic groups)
• Thalassemia
• Karyotype
• Blood Group

Counselling for prospective egg donors

All prospective egg donors are offered counselling, but they are not obliged to accept it. The donor should be comfortable with her decision to donate eggs and they renounce all rights to them. In the cases of known donors, related issues such as the potential impact of the relationship between the donor and recipient should be explored by a trained counsellor.

A doctor will review the medical and family history and perform a general and internal examination. A full explanation of the treatment and procedures will be provided to the couple. There may be a need for the male partner to provide a sperm specimen for semen analysis.

Women over the age of 45 should be counselled about the welfare of the potential offspring as well as the risks of pregnancy and labour in older women. They also require an ECG and Health report to state they can carry a viable pregnancy with no harm to them or a potential baby.

Pregnancy and live birth rates following egg donation are significantly higher compared to that achieved with IVF using the woman’s own eggs. Success of pregnancy is over 70% in each treatment cycle. There are of course many factors that may affect success rates.