Egg donation in IVF treatment depends on the age of the clientele that the centre caters to. In women between the ages of 30 – 35 years, the requirement for egg donors is about 10- 20%, and increases as women get older. In women older than 40 years, a large majority of them require egg donors. Also, since Indian women undergo menopause approximately five years earlier than women in the west, the quality of eggs retrieved at the same age is lower in Indian women as compared to their western counterparts, and hence they require egg donations much earlier.
When a couple visits an infertility clinic, depending on their medical history, a treatment plan is designed. An egg donor is selected based on her physical characteristics to match the recipient in terms of colour of skin, hair, eyes and height, etc. In an egg donor IVF cycle, injections / medication of variable doses are given to the donor according to the treatment plan, to stimulate the ovaries to produce more eggs than that would grow naturally; this is followed by an ultrasound monitoring of the growing follicle/s. Once the follicle/s have grown to the required size, a trigger injection is given for the final maturation of the eggs. The eggs are retrieved between 34 – 36 hours after the trigger on the day of egg collection, under short general anesthesia. Simultaneously, on the day of the donor’s ovum pick up, the male partner’s sperm is washed in the lab. Sperm washing involves removal of any debris, residual cells, dead sperms, etc., from the semen sample and in most cases the best sperms with good motility are retrieved from the sample for further use. In case of IVF, the washed sperms are released in dish which has the egg/s, like what happens in the female body after unprotected intercourse wherein the sperms run towards the eggs in the dish, and the best sperm fertilizes the egg. However, in some cases where the sperms are not good, IVF may not give satisfactory outcomes. In such cases, the embryologist – a highly trained medical professional, manually selects the best sperm from the semen sample, and injects it in each donor egg by a procedure called intra cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). At the same time, the recipient female partner’s endometrium needs to be prepared to synchronize with the donor’s cycle. The embryo/s developed by IVF / ICSI are observed further, followed by the transfer into the recipient’s uterus. In some cases, when it is not possible to match the donor and the recipient’s cycles, the embryos formed are frozen, and transferred in a subsequent month.
The cost of an egg donor IVF / ICSI treatment in India varies between clinics and between cities, and will not be the same when compared between Mumbai, Pune or Delhi. The cost can range anywhere between Rs. 1.5 – Rs. 4 lakh. This cost includes compensation to the donor, the agency and routine investigations that are done to rule out any infections or genetic disorders in the donor. All relevant medical tests eliciting a detailed medical history are also included in this cost, to evaluate the donor’s overall health and rule out diabetes, hypothyroidism, heart disease etc. The cost of the injections / medication for the donor, on the other hand, can additionally range between Rs. 30,000 – Rs. 80,000, depending on the response of their ovaries.
The cost of the injections / medication to synchronize the female recipient’s uterus lining (endometrium) with that of the donor can additionally range between Rs. 50,000 – Rs. 1 Lakh. This cost includes a number of pre-treatment requisites such as blood tests and ultrasound monitoring. If any embryos created in the cycle are frozen for later use, the cost of freezing and thawing followed by an embryo transfer may or may not be included in the initial treatment package. This needs to be confirmed with the clinic, as it can be an additional cost to the cycle, anywhere between Rs. 80,000 – Rs. 1,50,000. There are a number of add-ons which the doctor might suggest, such as laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, laser assisted hatching, pre-genetic screening, pre-genetic diagnosis, etc., which may enhance the pregnancy rate. However, these additional techniques will increase the costs for the cycle.
Not everyone gets a positive result in the first cycle itself; you may have to go through multiple cycles before getting a baby in your arms. The success rate for a single egg donor IVF cycle is anywhere between 65% – 75% on an average. There is also a 15% – 20% risk of having multiple pregnancy (twins or triplets) when undergoing any IVF treatment. The medications and injections can have a number of physiological and psychological side effects such as mood swings, anxiety, headaches, etc. in women, although no major side effect has been reported yet.
Undergoing any IVF cycle – donor or self, is like a roller coaster, and can be emotionally, financially as well as physically draining for a couple. Do not hesitate to talk to your doctor at any point when undergoing the treatment. Good luck!
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