Egg Freezing

For years we have talked about egg freezing and how great it would be if eggs could be frozen and then thawed and fertilised with the same success rates as fresh eggs. Now finally science has delivered. A group from Spain have reported on the vitrification ( a form of freezing) of more than 100,000 eggs and found the same success rates as with fresh eggs.  They estimate that for women aged less than 38, if 13 eggs were frozen there was a 50% chance of an ongoing pregnancy, 15 eggs a 60% chance, 20 eggs 76% chance and with 35 eggs a 97.6% chance.
The Spanish group have also followed up all the babies made with frozen eggs and have found no increased chance of abnormalities.
Egg freezing is a useful option for women about to undergo chemotherapy, where no sperm can be found on the day of egg collection or  for social reasons.The process is the same as for IVF, where drugs are given to stimulate the ovaries for around 10 to 12 days, the eggs are then collected under sedation by putting a needle through the vagina and into the ovaries. The eggs are then aspirated and frozen. Eggs may be frozen for 10 years in New Zealand. The cost is around $10,000 and there is an annual storage charge. When required, the eggs are thawed and injected with sperm and grown into embryos.
The success rates for frozen eggs are still largely determined by the age of the woman at the time of egg freezing. But is is really exciting that a technology that we have all wished for, is now looking so promising.