Post by EmbryoMom on Jun 11, 2010 22:22:32 GMT -5
Embryo Donation: By the Numbers
By: Susan Ince
Donating remaining embryos can be a supreme gift of love. But the practice is still a minuscule part of fertility treatments — and some discourage it, fearing logistical complications as well as ethical ones. Of 50,769 babies delivered as a result of assisted reproduction in 2006 (the latest data available), only 356 were from donated embryos. "There's not as much acceptance of embryo donation as you might think," says Elizabeth Ginsburg, M.D., president of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART). "Most people want a genetic connection with the child if it's at all possible, and most couples are not comfortable having embryos created for them going into another couple."
The embryo picture today:
•On average, seven embryos are created in an IVF cycle, but only two to three are used for each pregnancy attempt. Embryos that remain and are still viable are usually frozen, ready for further treatment if the first cycle is unsuccessful, or if the first treatment works and the couple desires more children later.
•About 500,000 embryos are now in frozen storage in the United States, according to SART, most in anticipation of future treatment by the original couple. But about 80 percent of IVF treatments are done with fresh, because the success rate is higher, so the oversupply grows.
•A couple can keep their embryos frozen indefinitely (research shows they remain viable for at least nine years; storage fees can run up to several hundred dollars a year), donate them to someone else, donate them to research, or have them thawed and discarded. The success rate using donor embryos is better than that of frozen embryos used by the people who created them.
•In a 2008 survey of over a thousand people with embryos in storage at nine fertility clinics, 48 percent indicated they were somewhat or very likely to donate their excess embryos to research. Less than half as many (22 percent) were somewhat or very likely to donate to another couple; about the same percentage said they would be somewhat or very likely to have their embryos thawed and destroyed.
•For every couple willing to donate embryos, there are an estimated two hoping to receive them, according to Reginald Finger, M.D., of the National Embryo Donation Center. About one-third of IVF clinics offer embryo donation, and about two-thirds of embryo donations take place within a single clinic. The other third involves outside agencies (some profit-making, some nonprofit) that screen, match, and counsel prospective donors and recipients.
•As with any other human tissue, infections such as HIV and hepatitis can be passed via embryo donation. The embryos can't be checked directly, so donors have to be tested. (In some cases, the embryos of untested donors are used, but they must be clearly marked so the recipient knows the small risk she is taking.)
•In most instances, recipients pay for donor testing, transportation of the embryos, and sometimes for storage fees, as well as for their own medical treatment. According to a study presented at the American Society of Reproductive Medicine in 2008, the cost of a delivery using a donor embryo is about half of that when using a donor egg.
•Although embryo donation is often called embryo adoption, and many elements of the adoption process (such as a home study) may be involved, legally, the actual transfer of embryos is generally governed by property/contract laws. That means that once a contract is signed and embryos are turned over, donors can't change their minds, and they have no further legal rights or responsibilities to the embryos or the offspring.
•Donation can be anonymous or not, with couples determining the level of ongoing contact or information exchanged. At some centers, prospective donors and recipients gain access to details (and sometimes pictures) to help pick who'll give and receive frozen embryos.
•The Resolve Website (resolve.org) contains a wealth of information about embryo donation and is a good place to start if you're considering the process.
Taken from: www.goodhousekeeping.com/family/real/siblings-of-a-sort-8
By: Susan Ince
Donating remaining embryos can be a supreme gift of love. But the practice is still a minuscule part of fertility treatments — and some discourage it, fearing logistical complications as well as ethical ones. Of 50,769 babies delivered as a result of assisted reproduction in 2006 (the latest data available), only 356 were from donated embryos. "There's not as much acceptance of embryo donation as you might think," says Elizabeth Ginsburg, M.D., president of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART). "Most people want a genetic connection with the child if it's at all possible, and most couples are not comfortable having embryos created for them going into another couple."
The embryo picture today:
•On average, seven embryos are created in an IVF cycle, but only two to three are used for each pregnancy attempt. Embryos that remain and are still viable are usually frozen, ready for further treatment if the first cycle is unsuccessful, or if the first treatment works and the couple desires more children later.
•About 500,000 embryos are now in frozen storage in the United States, according to SART, most in anticipation of future treatment by the original couple. But about 80 percent of IVF treatments are done with fresh, because the success rate is higher, so the oversupply grows.
•A couple can keep their embryos frozen indefinitely (research shows they remain viable for at least nine years; storage fees can run up to several hundred dollars a year), donate them to someone else, donate them to research, or have them thawed and discarded. The success rate using donor embryos is better than that of frozen embryos used by the people who created them.
•In a 2008 survey of over a thousand people with embryos in storage at nine fertility clinics, 48 percent indicated they were somewhat or very likely to donate their excess embryos to research. Less than half as many (22 percent) were somewhat or very likely to donate to another couple; about the same percentage said they would be somewhat or very likely to have their embryos thawed and destroyed.
•For every couple willing to donate embryos, there are an estimated two hoping to receive them, according to Reginald Finger, M.D., of the National Embryo Donation Center. About one-third of IVF clinics offer embryo donation, and about two-thirds of embryo donations take place within a single clinic. The other third involves outside agencies (some profit-making, some nonprofit) that screen, match, and counsel prospective donors and recipients.
•As with any other human tissue, infections such as HIV and hepatitis can be passed via embryo donation. The embryos can't be checked directly, so donors have to be tested. (In some cases, the embryos of untested donors are used, but they must be clearly marked so the recipient knows the small risk she is taking.)
•In most instances, recipients pay for donor testing, transportation of the embryos, and sometimes for storage fees, as well as for their own medical treatment. According to a study presented at the American Society of Reproductive Medicine in 2008, the cost of a delivery using a donor embryo is about half of that when using a donor egg.
•Although embryo donation is often called embryo adoption, and many elements of the adoption process (such as a home study) may be involved, legally, the actual transfer of embryos is generally governed by property/contract laws. That means that once a contract is signed and embryos are turned over, donors can't change their minds, and they have no further legal rights or responsibilities to the embryos or the offspring.
•Donation can be anonymous or not, with couples determining the level of ongoing contact or information exchanged. At some centers, prospective donors and recipients gain access to details (and sometimes pictures) to help pick who'll give and receive frozen embryos.
•The Resolve Website (resolve.org) contains a wealth of information about embryo donation and is a good place to start if you're considering the process.
Taken from: www.goodhousekeeping.com/family/real/siblings-of-a-sort-8