LA Times Examines Increasing Popularity of Egg Freezing To Preserve Fertility

Main Category: Fertility
Article Date: 19 Jul 2005 - 14:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

The Los Angeles Times on Monday examined the increasing demand for a procedure in which a woman's eggs are harvested and cryogenically frozen for possible future use. Until recently, the procedure had been used almost exclusively among clinical trial volunteers and women preparing to begin chemotherapy, which can lead to premature menopause and infertility in women of childbearing age. However, now that there has been some success in thawing and using previously frozen eggs for fertilization and implantation, many women who "aren't ready to become mothers but want to preserve that option" are undergoing the procedure, according to the Times. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine in guidelines released in October 2004 recommended against offering the procedure to healthy women, saying that it has resulted in a limited number of pregnancies and that pregnancy rates are below that of standard in vitro fertilization procedures. However, the procedure's success rate is expected to increase and the number of U.S. clinics offering the service is expected to double this year. Between 100 and 200 infants have been born as a result of oocyte cryopreservation, which currently is conducted only at about 12 clinics worldwide and costs at least $10,000, according to the Times (Roan, Los Angeles Times, 7/18).

Los Angeles Times

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

• Additional
• References
• Citations