Egg freezing, or oocyte cryopreservation, is a great way to preserve your future fertility, as the process enables you to freeze and store your eggs to significantly extend your reproductive window.
It isn’t right for everyone. But for some, who don’t want to get pregnant now and want the option later down the line, egg freezing is a great option. Though it’s also an intensive and emotional process that should be taken after serious consideration of all the factors involved.
What does the egg freezing process actually involve?
The process itself involves undergoing a round, or several rounds of IVF, so that your eggs mature, followed by a general anaesthetic, so your clinician can extract multiple eggs. Your eggs will then be preserved at a low temperature and can be stored for an extended period of time with your consent, though the exact length depends on where you’re storing your eggs.
Most people under 40 have between 7-14 eggs extracted – but if you have lower ovarian reserves, the number may be less. If you want to fertilise your frozen eggs later, whether with your partner’s sperm or another donor’s, they’ll have to be thawed out first via ICSI before they can be injected and fertilised.
This is because the freezing process makes the egg’s coating tougher, so sperm finds it more difficult to penetrate during IVF fertilisation – and the thawing process adds to the cost. If you’re in the UK, you can get NHS funding for egg freezing – but not everyone will be eligible. If you’re not eligible, the average cost of freezing, thawing and fertilisation can run anywhere between £8,000 and £20,000.
Who is most suitable for egg freezing?
If you’re looking to preserve your eggs for future use
Egg freezing may be something you should consider, if now isn’t the right time to fall pregnant but you’re worried about your future fertility and know you may want to. It’s ideal, if you want to wait until you find the right partner to become pregnant, or need to focus on your career now, but don’t want to miss out on motherhood at a later point.
If you will be undergoing chemotherapy or a similarly invasive treatment
Chemotherapy and treatment for other disorders such as autoimmune issues are extremely invasive – and one of the side effects can be that your fertility takes a battering. Before embarking on a course of this type of treatment, you may want to ensure your fertility, which is where egg freezing can come in handy.
If you’re trans and looking to preserve your fertility before hormones or surgery
The hormones you take and surgery you may undergo during transition can hugely affect fertility and your capacity to conceive naturally. Transmasculine individuals who may want to have a biological child later but will be going through medical transition might want to consider egg freezing before embarking on gender-affirming treatment.
If you have a family history of early menopause
If you have a history of early menopause in your family, or you have a genetic condition like Turner syndrome, you may also want to consider freezing the eggs you have. Turner syndrome increases the chance of ovarian insufficiency, which means that even if you’re under 40, your ovaries may already not be producing as many follicles as would be typical for someone of your age. As you get older, this number will drop even further, so egg freezing can be a good way to preserve the fertility you do still have.
If you’re in your 20s or 30s
Your fertility naturally declines as you age, making it harder to fall pregnant as your eggs will decrease in both quantity and quality. To increase the chance of a successful future pregnancy using frozen eggs, it’s better to undergo egg freezing in your 20’s or 30’s, as it’s much more difficult to extract a high number of healthy, viable eggs the older you are.
If you have religious objections to freezing embryos but will be undergoing IVF
Some people will be undergoing IVF due to problems falling pregnant naturally but will have religious or personal beliefs that mean they struggle with the idea of freezing a fertilised embryo. In this case, egg freezing is a possible alternative option, as instead of freezing a fertilised embryo, you can extract your eggs and freeze them, without running into any ethical conflict.
If you can afford the cost of treatment
Egg freezing can be exceedingly expensive and if you aren’t eligible for NHS funding you need to be able to afford the full cost of treatment. This includes any initial consultations, fertility medication and the egg retrieval process itself, plus the storing and preservation of your eggs. You’ll also need to consider the future financial viability of being able to afford to thaw out your eggs and then have them fertilised via IVF.
Conclusion
Egg freezing can be an excellent way of using technology to broaden your reproductive choices, but isn’t a decision that should be taken lightly. There are a number of factors to consider before going down this road, including the expense, your age and medical conditions. There’s also an emotional component, as you need to be mentally prepared for the process, including how you might feel about your extracted eggs and what you may want to do with them.
Ultimately, the decision to freeze your eggs is incredibly personal and getting advice from a fertility expert beforehand can be very helpful, to enable you to make a fully informed choice that aligns with your current situation and future.
