Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

Infertility tourism – the future of fertility treatment?

2012-01-30T10:53:00.000-07:00

One of the hottest trends in modern European medicine is medical tourism – where patients travel out of their country to nearby nations in order to receive a particular treatment.

The need to travel out of the country for medical procedures typically comes from the fact that some countries have laws prohibiting or restricting some treatments that other countries allow or are less-restrictive of.

However, with the recent global economic downturn, medical tourism has gone the same way general tourism has – down. According to Keith Pollard of Treatment Abroad, health care spending has largely decreased at a similar rate to consumer spending in Europe.

Yet there is one exception to this downward trend in medical tourism: infertility treatment. In fact, the number of people traveling to other European countries for fertility treatment has actually gone up in the past few years, according to a paper presented at the recent European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology annual meeting.

Pollard says that infertility treatment is typically “recession proof,” where patients are very intent on receiving treatment and are willing to find any way to pay for it.

And in countries like Italy, where sperm donation is banned, patients are not only forced to find creative ways to pay for it, but must travel outside of their own country to receive donation-related treatments.

Other countries that have related laws affecting fertility treatment are Germany (egg donation), France (assisted conception for single women), and the UK, which requires donor anonymity.

Thus, many Europeans are forced to travel to receive the treatment they wish to pursue. A recent article in Human Reproductive Advance Access showed that nearly two-thirds of people utilizing infertility tourism in Europe came from Italy, The Netherlands, France and Germany.

About 18 percent of those travelling were pursuing semen donation, 22.8% for egg donation and 3.4% for embryo donation.

Could medical tourism be the future of fertility treatment? Would you be willing to travel out of country to receive treatment?

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Embryo donors and adopters share their story (Part 1)

2012-01-27T14:13:00.000-07:00

(The following was written by an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter. It has been edited by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.)

Part 1 of a story about embryo adoption and donation - Donor Perspective:

Ken and Barbara chose to place their embryos with an adoptive couple. As part of the adoption matching process, they wrote this letter to the adoptive family:

Dear Adoptive Family,

We are very fortunate to have found you and are grateful for the opportunity to share one of life’s profound blessings with you. If your experience in becoming parents is anything like ours, we understand the hope, exhilaration, and periodic disappointment you may have endured along this journey.

We decided to have a family later in life, in our early and mid-40s. Unfortunately, our first pregnancies ended in heartbreaking miscarriages, and the fertility treatments that followed were also unsuccessful. We learned that the only way we might have genetically-related offspring would be through the use of an egg donor.

Our first attempt using a “fresh cycle” was unsuccessful, which was very disappointing. But we had resolved to give IVF three chances for success. Our second attempt using a frozen embryo was successful and our daughter was born in the summer. She is the joy of our lives. Given our advancing age and unexpected health concerns that emerged shortly after the birth of our baby, making another pregnancy risky for Barbara, we are unable to add to our family by using our remaining five embryos.

We would welcome the opportunity to know the outcome of your treatments resulting in a birth of a child. We are interested in the welfare of any children born from our donation. However, we in no way wish to interfere with the adoptive family, and will respect the manner in which the child(ren) are raised and wishes for possible future contact. We are open to future contact as mutually agreeable, but realize the future often has uncharted paths and developments we cannot always anticipate.

We only ask that the child(ren) be told at a suitable time by their adoptive parents that we love them, the circumstances recounted above that motivated us to contact the Snowflakes program, and our desire for them to have the opportunity for life, to thrive, and be part of a loving and nurturing family.

We intend to inform our daughter about the circumstances surrounding her conception and that she has a sibling(s) who are part of another family, should that in fact be the case. As our children grow and mature, there may be a time when, by mutual agreement, a closer contact between families is explored.

Sincerely,

Ken & Barbara

They had no idea who might be waiting to become a family. Read about the adopting couple's story in next week's blog...

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Stop Stressing about Stress

2012-01-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

Stress has long been considered a factor in infertility. Researchers have often wondered which came first: the stress or the infertility. Infertility causes stress. Stress certainly does not seem to help with a struggle with infertility. Many researchers have even considered that stress may contribute to infertility. As such, patients undergoing fertility treatments have tried many routes to reduce their stress in an effort to achieve a successful pregnancy.

A recent British-based study, however, suggests that patients undergoing assisted reproductive technologies can do one more thing to reduce their anxiety: stop stressing about stress.

The study by Cardiff University’s Jacky Boivin suggests that anxiety does not reduce a woman’s chances of achieving a successful pregnancy.

Boivin said that women often worry that their worry is negatively impacting their chances of pregnancy, “But our findings show that there is no reason for them to fret even more that any difficulties they are facing may prevent them from becoming pregnant. They can at least relax about that” (See Stress 'does not stop IVF working').

These findings were based off a careful analysis of 14 studies in which 3,583 infertile women had their stress levels assessed using recognized psychological techniques and assessing markers such as anxiety, tension, and depression. Following the assessments, the women underwent one IVF cycle. Boivin found that women who were markedly under more stress were just as likely to achieve a pregnancy as their more at ease peers.

Dr. Zev Rosenwaks, director of the Cohen/Perelman Center for Reproductive Medicine at New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, was not surprised to hear of these findings. Rosenwaks remarks, “We know from other exceedingly stressful situations — wars and famines — that women were still able to reproduce. So it's not a surprising finding” (See Stress Doesn't Hurt Chances of Success with IVF).

This new study adds weight to a 2010 study conducted at Staten Island University Hospital, New York which found that women with the highest levels of stress had up to double the chance of a positive pregnancy test compared with those who were the most stress-free.

Boivin, however, emphasized that women should address the stress they were facing while going through their infertility treatments. Stress is the primary determining factor for one third of couples who end assisted reproductive treatments early. By addressing stress, couples may be better prepared to endure the rigors of assisted reproductive technologies and thereby have greater success at building a family.

To read more please visit the Time's Healthland Section, The Telegraph's Health News Section, or BBC's Health Section.

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The New Infertility Community

2012-01-16T16:41:00.000-07:00

In the past, infertility was not something that was easily and openly talked about. Fast forward to the present, while it’s still a sensitive subject for many families struggling to get pregnant, infertility is quickly becoming less and less of a taboo subject.

One main source of the growth of communication surrounding infertility has been the explosion of social media. Now, instead of thinking they are the only people going through it, couples all over the globe have been opened up to the reality that they are not alone in the world of infertility.

One popular source for information and support with difficulties conceiving a child is online infertility support groups. A quick Google search yields a list of more than 1.3 million results on the subject. Websites like DailyStrength.org and FertilityCommunity.com allow users to join anonymously and share what they are going through. With discussions revolving around all different experiences with infertility, support groups are a great way to share your joys, pains and everything in between. Most websites even have discussions of several different topics ranging from adoption and infertility, in vitro fertilization and even embryo donation and adoption.

Likely the fastest growing sources of infertility information on the web are fertility blogs. Families who once may have kept their fertility struggle hidden are now sharing their hearts and experiences with all who want to know. Blogs are a great way for those beginning their fertility journey to see the journey of those who have gone before them.

A relatively new form of communication in the world of infertility has come from video blogging via websites like YouTube. Now, instead of just reading about people’s experiences, you are now able to see them first hand. One such example of a video blog comes from Jimmy and Christine Moore who are continually documenting their journey through embryo adoption. From taking fertility shots to visiting the doctor and even sharing some heart break, the Moores have put their life on display for all to see and learn from.

Even the Awareness Center is developing the art of social networking on behalf of embryo donation and adoption. Please continue to visit our blog, search for us on Facebook, Twitter and even watch our videos on YouTube.

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The Incredible Path to Embryo Adoption: Rodney and Heather’s Story- Part 5

2012-01-13T08:41:00.000-07:00

The following is Part 5 of Heather and Rodney’s Embryo Adoption story. Their story is revealed in a five part series on the EAAC blog. Part 1-4 are posted on earlier EAAC blogs.

We decided to move forward with the transfer of our last little embryo. This time, I wanted to do a natural cycle – no meds to control my reproductive system, just allow me to ovulate on my own and then transfer the embryo. Our clinic was a bit hesitant to do this, but did agree to it.

It was so nice to not have to have the constant injections and to just let my body do what it was supposed to do! When I was ready to ovulate, they had me take a trigger shot to ensure they could time ovulation, and we transferred our final embryo. Another perfect transfer and we knew that God had this under control, too.

This time, I didn’t test every day. I wasn’t sure what to think. I didn’t want to get my hopes up too much. I was scheduled for testing at the clinic at eight days past my transfer (the embryo was five days old when transferred). That morning I woke up at 4 a.m. and decided to take a pregnancy test.

And there were two lines.

I remember staring at those two lines thinking I must be dreaming. Was this really happening? Then the difficulty breathing started. I was in shock. Rodney woke up to hear me in the bathroom and thought something was wrong. When he came in, I just looked at him and shaking like a leaf said, “There are two lines…” and showed him the stick. I had to make sure he could see them, too!

Sure enough, he could, and this was real. We called my parents and brother at some crazy hour of the morning to tell them. I went in for my testing at the clinic and sure enough, the results came back positive.

From there on out, it was smooth sailing! We saw our little ones heartbeat around seven weeks, a sweet profile ultrasound at 10 weeks; and at 19 weeks found out we were having a girl.

Sweet Aubrey was born on November 1st, 2010 at 1:55 a.m. She was absolutely breathtaking from the very beginning. We are so in love and in awe of the gift we have been given in Aubrey. Every single day she brings us laughter and joy. She gives us reasons to smile when the rest of life seems so difficult.

Aubrey is now nine months old and continues to delight us with everything she does. There are no words to describe the gratitude we have to both Nightlight Inc.’s Snowflakes Embryo Adoption Program and Aubrey’s genetic parents. While we do not have much contact with them at this time, we are forever thankful for their sacrifice – their willingness to donate their embryos so they could continue their lives and so we could be parents.

Read about the Stalnaker’s journey as it happened at http://emptywombhopefulheart.blogspot.com.If you want to learn more about Embryo Adoption, visit EmbryoAdoption.org.

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The Incredible Path of Embryo Adoption: Rodney and Heather’s Story: Part 4

2012-01-06T16:20:00.000-07:00

The following is Part 4 of Heather and Rodney’s Embryo Adoption story. Their story is revealed in a five part series on the EAAC blog.

Within two weeks of submitting our home study and profile, I was already contacting Nightlight asking how things were going. I told you, I’m not patient! I wanted to know if anything was in the works. The Snowflakes Program Manager was working on sending out our profile. Then, on August 19th, we got the letter. We had been chosen! There was a couple who wanted US to adopt their embryos! We were thrilled.

There were 3 precious embryos waiting for us to adopt. Honestly, at first I was hesitant because I had been hoping for a large number of embryos. But in talking to Rodney, who is amazing during huge eventful times like these, I came to see that these three embryos were just as precious and important as a group of 10 or 12 embryos. They needed a home, and we had a home to give. And so we said YES!! We were beyond excited. Within about 5 months from starting with Nightlight, we were matched!

Everything was signed and the embryos were shipped to us in October. I started all of the medications, shots, etc, to prepare my body for the transfer of our embryos. We chose to transfer 2 of the embryos and have one remaining for a transfer at another time. As time went on, I think we both felt sure this would work and we would soon be pregnant with twins.

Our transfer was November 13th, 2009. Everything went perfectly and the embryos were beautiful. We didn’t tell anyone the day we had the transfer, and then gave my family pictures of the embryos the next day. Everyone was so excited and sure right along with us that we were going to remain pregnant and have little ones with us in 9 months.

I started pregnancy testing pretty early, and saw negative test after negative test. By the time the day finally came for my testing at the clinic, I knew what the results would be. I had taken the day off of work and was wandering around the mall when I got the call. Our babies were gone.

I drove in a state of numbness to my husband’s work and shut the door to his office. And I lost it. He held me and comforted me and was the strong man he always is in times like these. We drove to my parents to tell them. And we both cried. We went home, comforted each other and pigged out on pizza and root beer floats.

We just didn’t understand why our babies didn’t make it. Just a month before, I had lost my grandpa to Alzheimer’s, and this time of grief losing both my grandpa and my babies was too much too bear. I kept asking why…I went through times of anger, calm, sadness, peace. It was a time of grief I had never known before. Rodney grieved with me and was a constant support.

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Dear Abby Addresses 21st Century Dilemma: Embryo Donation and Adoption

2012-01-03T16:40:00.000-07:00

Since 1956 readers have been turning to the “Dear Abby” column for answers to life's questions, concerns and more. Today [January 3, 2012] Abby addresses a concern facing 21st century readers: what should be done with frozen embryos remaining from in vitro fertilization treatments? Deadlocked in New Jersey and her husband are facing this difficult dilemma for two of their remaining embryos. Deadlocked and her husband successfully gave birth to twins via in vitro and then had a third child conceived naturally.

They believe their family is complete, yet morally, Deadlocked believes she should give the embryos ‘the chance [at life] they were meant to have.’

In the face of an economic hardship, Deadlocked’s husband is hesitant to pursue another frozen embryo transfer. This leaves Deadlocked unsure how to 'do what I believe is right and stand by my religious and moral beliefs' without causing her husband to resent her.

With more than 612,000 embryos in frozen storage in the U.S., many other families may be facing a similar struggle.

Abby suggests that Deadlocked may want to consider another option: embryo adoption. “Your embryos could be donated for embryo adoption by a couple who have been unable to conceive, and who would love to raise them.”

To read the Dear Abby Column visit Yahoo News. For more information on how to donate remaining embryos visit the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

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New study advocates for single embryo transfers

2011-12-19T13:04:00.000-07:00

There is a saying that it is not wise to put all one’s eggs in the same basket. Perhaps the same might be true for embryos.

A recent article in U.S. News and World Report explains that women undergoing In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) may have a higher rate of full term pregnancy when transferring one embryo at a time - as opposed to multiple embryo transfers. Among the advantages of a single embryo transfer are notably higher percentages of full term pregnancies and a lower risk of low birth weights.

According to an analysis of nearly 1,400 embryo transfers by researchers at the University of Aberdeen, women in the study who had a single embryo transferred were five times more likely to give birth to a single healthy baby. Additionally the study showed that single embryo transfer pregnancies are significantly more likely to carry a pregnancy to a full 37 weeks.

Evidence in the study does show that women having a double embryo transfer have a higher rate of pregnancy, 42%, compared to a 27% percent pregnancy rate. When a woman underwent a second single embryo transfer during the study, their pregnancy rate jumped to 38%.

“Our review should be useful in informing decision-making regarding the number of embryos to transfer in IVF,” Aberdeen researchers said in the U.S. News and World Report article, adding that these findings could help to shape practical guidelines for would-be mothers and doctors.

The study could have significant impact when it comes to Embryo Donation and Adoption, a relatively new form of adoption in which families adopt frozen embryos. The end goal of embryo donation and adoption is for adoptive families to give birth to their adopted child.

To read more about Embryo Donation and Adoption please visitwww.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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The Incredible Path to Embryo Adoption: Rodney and Heather’s Story- Part 3

2011-12-16T08:47:00.000-07:00

The following is Part 3 of Heather and Rodney’s Embryo Adoption story. Their story is revealed in a five part series on the EAAC blog. If you missed it, catch up on Part 1 and Part 2

We spent time focusing on Rodney’s health, which seemed connected to our fertility struggle. We also continued with some natural attempts at helping our fertility. We went to a chiropractor. Rodney saw an acupuncturist for a while. We did natural supplements and vitamins. All of these things we hoped would help our infertility and Rodney’s health. And yet nothing improved or changed.

In April of 2008, we were ready. We made an appointment with an urologist who specialized in infertility who came recommended by our Reproductive Endocrinologist. We discovered that Rodney had bilateral varicoceles, which can sometimes interfere with infertility. We made the difficult decision to have surgery to repair them. The surgery was in August 2008.

Three months later, we had follow up tests to see if anything had improved. Unfortunately, they hadn’t. It was quite a blow to us. The doctor asked us to wait another 3 months and have at least one more test done. He had already recommended in vitro fertilization (IVF) with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) to us, but we weren’t ready emotionally or financially to do that. So in February 2009, we had our last test done.

The results were devastating. Zero. The numbers showed zero sperm. Not a few, not just slow. But nothing. I don’t think there is anything that could have prepared us for that. We were shocked.

That closed the door on biological children for us. What now? What do we do? Rodney did not feel right about adoption at the time and I still desperately wanted to carry a baby and experience pregnancy. It seemed impossible.

As I pondered our situation, I remembered a radio program we had heard where they had discussed “Snowflake” babies – embryo adoption. I discussed it with some people from my support groups. I was unsure how to bring this up with Rodney and wasn’t sure if he would be open to it. After about a week of thinking of it myself, I decided I needed to mention it to Rodney.

He also remembered having heard about embryo adoption from the radio program, but wasn’t sure of how it all worked. I was thrilled to hear he was open to the idea! In fact, he told me that he thought this might be a great idea because he knew how badly I wanted to be pregnant and he wanted that for me, too. So we both thought about it for another week…and then we both decided to say YES to embryo adoption. And so there we were – we were going to adopt embryos!

Everything started to move so quickly! I called Nightlight and got the application information in March. I called a local adoption agency and we had our first homestudy meeting on April 1st, 2009. Our homestudy was complete in June, our profile was finished and sent to Nightlight in July and we were officially waiting!

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Tall = Twins?

2011-12-12T11:16:00.000-07:00

Many women seeking to become pregnant through In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) or embryo donation and adoption will chose a double embryo transfer. Transferring more than one embryo at a time often results in the births of multiples, but for some, it’s a risk they are willing to take to achieve a successful pregnancy. A recent discovery in the fertility world, however, may diminish this risk.

Tall women are more likely to give birth to twins when undergoing a double embryo transfer, according to the findings of a recent study out of the Netherlands. Dr. Marieke Lambers, of VUMC, Gynaecology Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine, Amsterdam, believes that the findings of this new study will aid doctors in deciding how many embryos to transfer during In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) or embryo donation and adoption. (European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology)

The preliminary finding is based off of a study of the 2,357 Dutch women who had a double embryo transfer between 1983 and 1995, which resulted in 496 pregnancies, with 125 of those being twin pregnancies. Upon assessing the pregnancies of twins, Dr. Lambers found a maternal height of over 5 feet 7 inches. (ESHRE)

Dr. Lambers found the connection between height and the number of children conceived per pregnancy difficult to explain.

“Previous studies have shown that women who are prone to conceive twins after IVF have a higher level of vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A), which promotes the growth of blood vessels at the site of implantation. Perhaps there is also an association between tall stature and increased VEGF-A levels,” she said. (ESHRE)

“Doctors working in IVF are faced with a constant balancing act between giving the best chance of achieving a pregnancy without incurring all the problems associated with multiple births,” Dr. Lambers explains. (ESHRE)

Dr. Lamber’s hope is that this study, which is the first evidence that the mother’s height may impact the ability of multiple embryos to implant in her womb, may help doctors in personalizing embryo transfers.

“This is an important topic,” she continued, “since multiple pregnancies involve a higher risk of problems for the mother, such as pre-eclampsia, and also for the baby due to pre-term or immature delivery.” (ESHRE)

To read more about Dr Lamber’s study, visit the press site for the ESHRE.

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The Incredible Path to Embryo Adoption: Rodney and Heather’s Story- Part 2

2011-12-09T08:27:00.001-07:00

The following is Part 2 of Heather and Rodney’s Embryo Adoption story. Their story is revealed in a five part series on the EAAC blog. If you missed Part 1 get caught up here.

After about a year and a half of trying unsuccessfully to conceive, we agreed to go to the doctor. I scheduled an appointment with my obstetrician and we went in for a consultation. He set up the basic tests for both of us – a hysterosalpingogram (HSG) for me to make sure my tubes were clear, and a semen analysis for Rodney. I agreed to have my test done first. All was clear, and everything looked good. They did some blood work and everything showed clear.

Rodney’s test was next. We had to wait a couple of days for the results, and when the doctor called and told me, I was beyond shocked. There it was, in black and white (literally, as they faxed me the results). Our sperm count was incredibly low, motility was very slow and the morphology showed no healthy sperm in the little that was there.

I met Rodney for lunch and shared the results with him. As I said earlier, I am a “fix-it” kind of girl – now that we knew the problem, I was anxious to move forward. I plunged forward in our conversation from “here’s the issue” to “the doctor said we could try thus and such, but we’d need to do this now to make it work for our next cycle….” My voice slowly dropped off as I watched my husband’s reaction. He needed time to process what I had just told him.

We waited. We continued to try naturally, but we didn’t get pregnant. I continued in a downward spiral of sadness and disappointment. It was a roller coaster – every month I would have renewed hope. Then two weeks later, my period would start and I would be devastated. Rodney didn’t know what to do for me. I didn’t know what to do for myself.

During this time, I found both an online and a local support group that became my lifelines. I met women going through some of the same issues. I could finally talk to people who could relate to this pain and intense heartache. Rodney was supportive of my finding an additional outlet for all of my bottled up emotions.

In July of 2007 (now 2 ½ years into our journey), we went back to the Reproductive Endocrinologist. Repeat testing showed yet again the same results. The doctor recommended we see an urologist. We saw one doctor right away but he made both Rodney and I extremely uncomfortable and we didn’t feel he was compassionate or understanding at all towards our situation. We chose to put everything on hold due to our negative experience with this doctor. Neither of us was emotionally ready to move forward.

Stay tuned for next week as Rodney and Heather regain hope in an unexpected way.

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Awareness Center Mailbag

2011-12-05T08:47:00.000-07:00

The following are samples of letter and emails the Awareness Center has received in the past few months. If you would like to submit a question to the Awareness Center please email us at info@embryoadoption.org

Clara: I'm wondering what the age limit is for the adoptive mother? It all sounds like a great idea. I'm 50. Too old?

Great question Clara! The main requirement for embryo adoption is that a woman is able to carry a pregnancy to term. Any embryo adoption program you work with will require a letter from a doctor saying you are able to do this.

Many embryo adoption programs across the country do have age limits, but it really depends on the program. Some programs may even be willing to bend this age restriction a little bit under the correct circumstances.

One difficulty you may need to prepare for is finding a donor embryo match. Many embryo donors set specific requirements about what they are looking for in the person who adopts their embryos. This could be age, marital status, values, etc… Some donors may not set a specific requirement for the age of the person they are donating their embryos to, while others may not want an adoptive mother over 40 years old. Something to consider though, if you’re are 50 when your child is born, you will be 68 when they graduate high school.

I would recommend taking a look at the Embryo Adoption Programs page of EmbryoAdoption.org. Here you will find a list of programs from all across the U.S. as well as their requirements.

Tracy: What are the costs associated with the Embryo Adoption process from beginning to end?

This is a common question and one we are always happy to answer. The cost of embryo adoption from start to finish varies greatly depending on which program you are working with. On average an embryo adoption costs between $10,000-$12,000, making it one of the least expensive forms of adoption. [Embryo donation services directly received from a clinic without adoption services may be less expensive.]

This fee typically includes applications, the home study, the matching services, legal paperwork, shipment of embryos to the clinic you are using and clinic fees.

I would invite you to view the Embryo Adoption Programs page of our website. We do not have the cost of each program listed, but it could be a good starting point if you wish to investigate further.

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The Incredible Path to Embryo Adoption: Rodney and Heather’s Story- Part 1

2011-12-02T08:43:00.002-07:00

(The following is Part 1 of Heather and Rodney’s Embryo Adoption story. Their journey will be revealed in a five part series on the EAAC blog.)

Where do we even begin to tell our story? There is so much to share; so much that led us down this incredible path of embryo adoption.

We were married in January 2005. We had dated for over four years before getting married and had been friends for another four years before that. I (Heather) had wanted kids since I could remember – it was my dream to be a stay at home mom, to play with, teach and love on our little ones. My perfect number was four – a nice, large (in my mind) family, without getting too big, and keeping with even numbers. It was all perfect in my mind. Rodney wanted two kids at the most. We joked about who would “win” and how many kids we would actually wind up with.

When we were talking seriously about our future family, we did discuss the idea of “what if”. Rodney has ulcerative colitis and had been on some medications we knew were known to cause some fertility problems at times. We talked about the possibility of adoption, or would we just live life without kids, etc. But I don’t think either of us took that thought too seriously.

The one thing we did decide was that we weren’t going to prevent pregnancy from the get go. It wasn’t an “if” in our minds, but a “when”. So even on our honeymoon, I wondered if somehow, some way I would come home with a honeymoon baby.

Well, as you can guess, that didn’t happen. The weeks and months went by and I quickly started wondering if we were going to “ever” get pregnant. Rodney was quite a bit more patient than I was – he was content to wait.

After a year of trying, I started doing some research on how to best improve our chances. I wanted to get to the doctor right away, but Rodney was still content to wait. I couldn’t understand – if there was a problem, why would we not want to know? What if there was a simple solution? I’m such a fix-it and fix-it-right-now girl that not actively doing anything nearly drove me crazy.

I went online and started reading up on what I could do. And thus began the madness – charting my temperature, ovulation tests, good foods to eat for fertility, changing what we wear, how we bathe, trying to time things perfectly. And nothing helped. Time continued to go by, and I continued to become a blubbering mess every month when, once again, we were not pregnant.

Stay tuned to hear more of Heather and Rodney's amazing story next Friday.

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Making Miscarriage Less Mysterious

2011-11-28T08:27:00.000-07:00

Miscarriage. Painful and heart wrenching, but altogether too common, miscarriages occur in about 15-20% of all pregnancies. (American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) Until recently, researchers were unable to tell which pregnancies were the most likely to miscarry and which pregnancies could possibly be saved through targeted intervention. A recent study, however, may enable fertility researchers to now accurately predict which pregnant women are more likely to miscarry. (European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology)

“This research has, for the first time, offered us a robust tool to begin to attempt to rescue pregnancies threatening to miscarry, when, currently, all we can do is fold our hands and hope for the best,” said Dr Kaltum Adam, of St Mary’s Hospital in Manchester.

Until these preliminary findings, there was, according to Dr. Adam, “no way of predicting which threatened miscarriages will result in the end of the pregnancy and so we are unable to target attempts to rescue the pregnancy at the right women or to offer them counseling.” (ESHRE)

After studying the outcomes of 112 women who were six to ten weeks pregnant and at risk for miscarriage, Dr. Adam and her team developed a Pregnancy Viability Index (PVI). This new tool looks at the levels of bleeding and of the pregnancy hormone human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) to determine the viability of the pregnancy’s continuance. By the end of the study, the PVI accurately predicted which pregnancies would continue in 94% of cases and which pregnancies would miscarry in 74% of cases. (ESHRE)

The PVI will help avoid unnecessary interventions and testing, such as repeated ultrasounds and blood tests, to be avoided. Dr. Adam explains, “The use of the PVI will negate these in the vast majority (80%) of these women, as we will be able to reassure them of a high likelihood of pregnancy continuation and that there is little additional value in doing further testing…. Furthermore, psychological counseling and support could be targeted at the women most likely to miscarry, in order to reduce anxiety levels and improve their overall experience.” (ESHRE)

Dr. Adam anticipates that the PVI will allow for a better understanding of why the remaining 20% of at-risk pregnancies end in miscarriage.

“We are hopeful that by identifying factors that impact significantly on pregnancy outcome we will be able to gain a better understanding of the process of threatened miscarriage,” she said “This, in turn, may enable us to design more effective interventions to rescue these pregnancies.” (ESHRE)

No additional equipment is required to apply the PVI, which Dr. Adam trusts will lend itself to the PVI becoming a widely used tool in fertility clinics and doctors’ offices alike. As such, the PVI will likely have a positive outcome on sustaining the pregnancies conceived naturally, through IVF, and through embryo donation and adoption. (ESHRE)

The PVI may also improve the chances of women struggling with recurrent miscarriage (RM) of experiencing a live birth. Another study released during the ESHRE meeting in Stockholm found that already two of out three women with RM experience a live birth after being referred to a specialist. (ESHRE)

Research regarding the cause for miscarriage may also be helpful for families pursuing embryo donation and adoption.

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Acupuncture increases fertility rates

2011-11-21T08:50:00.000-07:00

Acupuncture has long been a treatment for physical pain, but thanks to positive results may also help treat the emotional pain of infertility.

A recent article appearing in the Tennessean tells the story of Brooke Akin and her husband who were struggling with infertility. After several different costly treatments failed to succeed, doctors suggested the Akins pursue in vitro Fertilization (IVF) as the next step in their journey.

Instead of turning to IVF, the Akins sought out other alternatives and then discovered acupuncture. Three short months and several acupuncture appointments later, the Akins were pregnant.

While Acupuncture appears to have a positive effect on families attempting to achieve a natural pregnancy, it also may be able to help families using assisted reproductive technology including embryo adoption. A 2002 study by the Department of Reproductive Medicine at the Christian-Lauritzen Institute in Germany demonstrated the benefits of acupuncture when going through ART.

The preliminary study, consisting of 160 patients fighting infertility, showed definitive results that acupuncture can improve a couple’s chance of getting pregnant. Out of 80 families in the test group, 34 (42.5%) became pregnant after going through acupuncture treatments. In comparison, only 21 (26.3%) families in the control group became pregnant without acupuncture treatments. Researchers concluded that “Acupuncture seems to be a useful tool for improving pregnancy rate after ART.”

To learn more about Embryo Adoption and ART visit embryoadoption.org.

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Pregnancy is a Possibility with Twice-Frozen Embryos

2011-11-14T10:49:00.000-07:00

A healthy baby was born last year after the transfer of three donated embryos that had been frozen and thawed twice after being stored in liquid nitrogen for a total of about 13.5 years. (PubMed.gov)

It may seem this baby was brought into the world against all odds, but a new study has found the pregnancy and live-birth rates after the transfer of twice-frozen embryos are comparable to those with once-frozen embryos. (Health24.com) These preliminary findings may mean more viable embryos may be available for donation to another family’s attempts at family building.

Dr. Juliette Koch of IVF Australia and Royal Hospital for Women, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia, compared the pregnancy and live birth rates of twice frozen embryo transfers with once-frozen embryo transfers generated through the same fresh IVF or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles among a test group of 44 women who had 40 once-frozen and 52-twice frozen transfers. The success rates were nearly identical. Of 43 transfers of once frozen blastocysts, 11 resulted in pregnancies and six in live births. The 52 blastocyst transfers of twice frozen embryos resulted in 13 pregnancies and seven live births. (Fertility and Sterility)

Miscarriage rates were also similar between once-frozen embryos (five miscarried) and twice-frozen (six miscarried). In both groups no birth defects were identified. (Health24.com)

The twice frozen embryos had a slightly lower survival rate than the once thawed embryos. Of the twice-frozen embryos 82% survived the transition from -192 C to room temperature compared to 89% of the once thawed embryos. (Health24.com)

"This preliminary data is reassuring for reproductive endocrinologists that embryos are not significantly harmed by freezing twice,” Dr. Koch stated, "It is important to continue to assess outcomes, including long-term outcomes of development." (Health24.com)

Further evidence of the potential to achieve pregnancy comes from a 2007 study appearing in Fertility and Sterility which shows women who use their own embryos will have, on average, a 32% chance of delivering to term, whereas women using adopted frozen embryos will have a 35% chance of delivering them to term. To find out more information on this study and the process of embryo donation and adoption visit EmbryoAdoption.org

To read more about Dr Koch’s study, visit Health24.com or Fertility and Sterility.

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Male vs. Female: Viva la Differance

2011-11-07T11:01:00.000-07:00

The differences between men and women seem to be never ending, even when it comes to infertility.

A new study from the University of Iowa indicates that a couple’s level of participation and openness in the world of social networking can depend on their infertility. Couples facing male infertility are more closed to talking about their struggles in the world of social media. On the other hand, couples facing female infertility seem to be more open.

Author Keli Ryan Steuber interviewed 50 couples going currently going through infertility during the study and explained that the social media fluctuation has to do with typical male and female behaviors. While infertility is likely a difficult subject for both genders, Steuber explains that it is more difficult for men to talk about while women more commonly seek support. According to the study, men are often fearful about how people will perceive their inability to have children.

"It aligns with the idea that couples do more work to maintain the husband's public persona," Steuber said in an article appearing on Newswise.com.

For women specifically, Steuber explained openness about infertility stems from a need to prove they really do want children.

“There's an expectation that women want children, and sometimes those who are voluntarily childless are labeled as selfish or too career-driven,” she said. “We wonder if that stigma overrides the stigma of infertility, to the point that women and their husbands feel compelled to clarify: 'We're not choosing to not have children. We can't have children.'"

Steuber next plans to research the outlets couples struggling with fertility most often use focusing on blogs, message boards or other social media communities. Social media outlets such as DailyStrength.com offer online groups for both men and women seeking support.

Other online resources discussing alternatives to help fight infertility are also readily available online. The Embryo Adoption Awareness Center is on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Adoption-Share, YouTube helping to share information about embryo adoption with couples struggling with infertility.

As always, comprehensive information on Embryo Donation and Adoption can be found at EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Embryo, Heal Thyself

2011-10-31T14:52:00.001-06:00

Not much in this world is perfect, but a new medical discovery shows embryos may have a way of perfecting themselves.

The survival of embryo in its earliest stages of development hinges on perfection. Embryos whose cells develop an atypical number of chromosomes have a smaller chance of carrying to term and a greater chance of Down syndrome or another chromosomal abnormality. Some atypical embryos can, however, heal their own genetic abnormalities, according to a new preliminary study conducted by Professor William G. Kearns and his colleagues. The Scientist

In many in vitro Fertilization (IVF) laboratories, three days after a woman’s eggs are fertilized they are biopsied to see if the five to eight embryonic cells have the correct number of chromosomes. If the cells have too many or too few chromosomes a miscarriage is more likely. The Scientist

Kearns, an associate gynecology and obstetrics professor at Jon Hopkins Medical Institutions in Baltimore and director of the Shady Grove Center for Preimplantation Genetics, LabCorp in Rockville, decided to see if embryos maintained their genetic defects as they matured between days three and five. His team’s findings backed a theory, originally proposed in the 1990s, but laid to rest in skepticism and an absence of evidence. If proven, Kearns’ theory would have vast implications on IVF and embryo donation and adoption. The Scientist

Out of the 126 embryos biopsied on day three and used Kearns’ study, 62 were genetically normal and 64 had too many or too few chromosomes. Of the 62 genetically normal embryos 43 (69.4%) developed to the blastocyst stage. Only 25 (39.1%) of the genetically abnormal embryos survived, but 16 (64%) of them appeared normal by day five of development. (European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology)
Kearns remarked, “These results suggest that there is a dynamic process of genetic normalization that occurs in the developing human embryo.”

Kerns’ theory is that the abnormal cells die or get pushed into the less vital outer shell of cells that will later form the placenta and away from the inner group of cells will develop into the fetus. He continues, “The exact mechanisms that allow this, however, at this time are still unknown.” ESHRE

While these findings are not 100% conclusive, Joyce Harper, a reproductive geneticist at the University of College London believes that the findings are likely true. She stated, “Kearn’s study just confirms what we’ve said for years. Do not genetically test the embryo on day 3.”

Harper feels that there is nothing to indicate an advantage of testing the chromosomal levels in the embryos prior to the time of implantation. Harper indicated that many presenters have testified that embryos with problems on day three may normalize by day five. The Scientist

To read more about Kearns’ findings, visit the press site for the ESHRE. Discover responses from embryologists and geneticists at The Scientist.

What do a Human Embryo and a Horse have in common?

2011-10-24T16:33:00.015-06:00

One of my favorite movies is “Seabiscuit,” a film whose heavy underdog theme centers on the potential of a life. Every time I watch the film, one specific quote sticks out to me, “You don’t throw away a life just because it’s a little banged up.” The quote not only refers to the title character, a race horse, but also the people around him who were all underdogs in life. While “Seabiscuit” takes place in the world of horse racing, its theme rings true in many other arenas of life including Embryo Donation and Adoption.

Embryo Adoption is a relatively new form of adoption where a couple who has completed their family building and can donate any remaining embryos to an adoptive family. The adoptive family transfers the donated embryos into the mother’s womb. The end result, if all goes according to plan, is the adoptive mother giving birth to her adopted child. Through Embryo Donation and Adoption Programs around the U.S., hundreds of children have been born who possibly would have remained in frozen storage forever.

While many frozen embryos are deemed to be healthy by physicians, others have factors involved in their creation which provide challenges to finding an adoptive family. These factors may include genetic mothers who were older at the time of egg retrieval, health issues in the genetic parents’ family or the embryos’ siblings, or a positive infectious disease test result from the genetic parent(s).

Although these “special case embryos” may have certain challenges associated with them, they still can mature to be happy, healthy children for those parents willing to give them a chance. As “Seabiscuit” reminds us, you don’t just throw away a life because it might be a little banged up. This thought applies to already born as well as frozen and waiting embryos.

To learn more about embryo donation and adoption, please visit EmbryoAdoption.org to find FAQ’s, video testimonials and educational webinars.

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Don’t Forget to Brush and Floss

2011-10-17T08:42:00.000-06:00

Mom always said ‘brush your teeth so you don’t get cavities.’ A new study may justify a mothers plea for clean teeth by showing that good oral health can also contribute to achieving a healthy pregnancy faster.

The preliminary findings in a recent study conducted by Professor Roger Hart of the University of Western Australia show that women with gum disease take, on average, two additional months to achieve a pregnancy than women with great oral health.

Professor Hart examined the pregnancy planning and outcome of 3,416 women in Australia. Statistically, women with gum disease took a little longer than seven months to conceive. Women without gum disease conceived in approximately five months. Hart also found that for 13.9% of non-Caucasian women with gum disease, it took a year to achieve a pregnancy, compared to 6.2% of their Caucasian counterparts.

In a news briefing, Hart said: “Our data suggest that the presence of periodontal disease is a modifiable risk factor, which can increase a woman’s time to conception, particularly for non-Caucasians. It exerts a negative influence on fertility that is of the same order of magnitude as obesity. This study also confirms other, known negative influences upon time to conception for a woman; these include being over 35 years of age, being overweight or obese, and being a smoker.” (27th Annual Meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction & Embryology)

Hart speculates that non-Caucasian women’s pregnancies were more impacted by gum disease because these women may have an elevated level of inflammatory response to the condition.

He concluded that women should resolve any periodontal disease before attempting to conceive. (ESHRE)

The study did not examine the impact of oral health on those going through infertility treatments; however, the benefits of proper oral care may cause women who are trying to conceive to resolutely pick up their toothbrush and floss. (Mayo Clinic)

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A New Beginning - Through Embryo Adoption (Part 2)

2011-10-10T10:53:00.001-06:00

(The following was written by an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter.)

By Dara
Edited by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

In Part one of this two-part story, Kevin and Dara were considering the possibility of adopting embryos available through the Snowflakes Embryo Adoption program.

The next month was a whirlwind of phone calls and paperwork, but soon we learned that we were to be the parents of these embryos! Months of preparation and planning with the doctor went on and then our transfer day had finally arrived. Two of the embryos survived to be transferred into my uterus, and then the long two-week wait began.

We were overjoyed to receive the news that, yes, we were pregnant! Nine wonderful months later, we went to the hospital for the birth.

We were asked if we would allow a nursing class to attend our labor and delivery. We also had a friend, the wife of the man who taught the class, attending. They all asked question after question about embryo adoption.

They were very interested and it was a great discussion. Then I finally started labor for real and we had our baby! The nursing students were crying and the nurse on staff was laughing as Kevin had told them all exactly how the labor would go and it did go just as he said. Then, while everyone was so emotional, our friend walked over to the nurse tending the baby and said to all the room.

“That, that baby, is what they are talking about when they say scientific research, when they say trash what is left from IVF, when they say these are embryos no one wants anyway. That baby, she was an embryo, she was potential trash or science, except her parents, both sets, valued life. I want you nurses to look at her, hear her cry and remember it isn’t just junk science can use. It is people, real people. This is pre-birth adoption of real little people.”

There wasn’t a dry eye in the room including the doctor and while our friend was firm and forceful her voice was awe-filled and they were all deeply moved and not the least bit offended.

Throughout the day and into the next we had nurses stopping in, saying they wished they had known about this before for themselves or someone in their family.

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A New Beginning – Through Embryo Adoption

2011-10-03T15:58:00.000-06:00

(The following was written by an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter.)

By Dara
Edited by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

Part 1

She is the end (or rather a new beginning) to our embryo adoption story. It began one day when I was reading on the Internet about international adoption and learned about the Snowflakes (Embryo Adoption and Donation) Program.

My husband, Kevin, and I agreed it was a wonderful program but never thought it would be in our future. Some months later, in an ethics class, the doctor who was teaching discussed embryos. We saw pictures of embryos just 3-6 days old, and my heart was pulled to take a stand and rescue these babies-to-be.

On the way to our oldest son’s college graduation, I was reading a newsletter. The newsletter provides resources for families who are home schooling kids with special needs or disabilities, and also provides information on children with special needs who are waiting for placement with adoptive families.

I am always encouraged to see the work they are doing and be challenged in my home schooling practices as I listen to the struggles many moms face and overcome daily. That particular newsletter had an article about a set of embryos looking for a family!

Due to the medical history, there was a possibility that these embryos might grow into babies with an illness incompatible with life. The agency was seeking a special family who knew of this possibility but was still willing to give these lives their chance. I was overwhelmed with the idea that we should take them.

I shared my thoughts with Kevin. He wondered about the process, the safety, and details but he felt if it worked out it was meant to be.

Story to be continued in the next EAAC Blog post...

Embryo Adoption Questions Answered - What is an Embryo Adoption Home Study?

2011-09-26T15:22:00.000-06:00

This week’s topic: Embryo Adoption Home Studies

Q: Why should a home study be required during the process of Embryo Donation and Adoption?

A: The importance of the home study is to help couples not only have healthy children, but healthy families.

An adoptive home study for the recipients of donated embryos ensures that the safeguards currently in place for traditional adoption also protect the child, the placing parents and the receiving parents in an embryo adoption situation.

Despite the fact that the adoptive mother gives physical birth to a child from an embryo donation, that child is still an adopted child; he or she shares no genetic relation to the adoptive mother or father. When children are born into a family whom they are not genetically related, they may have the same types of questions as those children adopted through traditional means.

‘Embryo adoption’ programs treat the process as just that – an adoption. This means the same protections and guidelines set in place for traditional adoption – home studies, legal contracts, post-adoption support and education – are applied to the embryo recipient/adopter. This process also protects the donor. It provides information about the family receiving their embryos and allows both couples to have input regarding how much communication there will be between the families following the exchange of the embryos.

Q: What does the home study process consist of?

A: The home study process is 20% screening and 80% education. It provides the adoptive family with an opportunity to learn about and anticipate these types of issues and questions. The home study also educates the parents of the best way to address and even answer these questions with sensitivity to the needs of the child.

The home study process benefits donating parents by assuring them that the adopting family was:

• evaluated for any health issues that may affect their ability to care for and raise a child.
• screened for any criminal and child abuse issues
• educated concerning the potential issues of parenting a non-genetically related child

Q: How can an adopting family find a local agency to conduct their home study?

For most embryo adoption programs, a traditional domestic home study is all that is required. It is best to find a private licensed adoption agency to work with because most state agencies or social services departments do not perform pre-placement home studies, and the ones who do most often will not provide a copy to an outside agency. You can find a list of agencies in your area on the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center website.

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Share your Embryo Donation and Adoption story with us!

2011-09-19T09:04:00.000-06:00

Have you or someone you know experienced the joy of pregnancy through Embryo Donation and Adoption? Are you just now beginning (or considering pursuing) this as an infertility alternative?

Would you like to share your journey through Embryo Adoption and help bring hope to the thousands of other families out there experiencing many of the same challenges?

The Embryo Adoption Awareness Center blog is currently looking for a handful of individuals or families who would be willing to share their story of involvement with Embryo Donation and Adoption via this blog.

We are looking for families who either have been through the process, are currently involved in an Embryo Donation or Adoption, or are planning on pursuing this adoption alternative in the near future. We may ask you to post once or twice, or an on-going basis if you are interested.

If you or someone you know might be interested, please e-mail Adam at adam@nightlight.org for more information.

Thank you for reading and supporting the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center blog!

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10 things you may not know about Embryo Donation and Adoption

2011-09-12T15:25:00.000-06:00

While Embryo Donation and Adoption is becoming more and more common, there are still several lesser-known aspects to the process. Here are ten facts you might not have known about this unique adoption and fertility alternative:

1. Embryo adoption and donation is generally less expensive than domestic or international adoption.

2. Couples with a single frozen embryo remaining after IVF can still donate the embryo for adoption.

3. The age of a frozen embryo doesn’t affect its ability to be donated. Embryos created and frozen in 1989 are just as welcome as embryos from 2010.

4. There is typically no cost to donate frozen embryos for adoption.

5. Embryo donation and adoption allows adopting mothers to experience the joy of pregnancy.

6. Several agencies (listed on EmbryoAdoption.org) handle all of the logistics of embryo adoption and donation including donor/adopter matching, shipment of frozen embryos and legal contracts.

7. Most experts advise to transfer no more than three frozen embryos in a single embryo transfer (FET) cycle.

8. Unused embryos that were thawed for an embryo transfer can be refrozen. Children have been born from embryos which have been frozen and thawed more than once.

9. Women who use their own frozen embryos from IVF will have a 32% chance of achieving pregnancy, whereas women using adopted frozen embryos will have a 35% chance [Fertility and Sterility, September 2007].

10. Some couples who have completed their embryo adoption in court have applied for and received the adoption tax credit.

You can read more about all of these facts at www.embryoadoption.org.

Cost of IVF vs. Cost of Embryo Adoption

2011-09-06T13:58:00.000-06:00

According to the American Fertility Association, more than one in every seven couples in the United States will struggle with infertility.

Fortunately for those couples, there are a variety of fertility treatments available, including In Vitro Fertilization (IVF).

Unfortunately, however, many of these treatments can be extremely expensive, making the journey to having a child a costly and difficult process.

While IVF itself generally costs somewhere between $10,000 to $15,000 according to Rachel Gurevich of About.com, there are many other facets of the process that can make the cost go much higher.

Fees for any additional assisted reproductive technologies used in the IVF process, including fertility drugs, ICSI, PGD and others, can quickly add up.

In addition, the $10,000 to $15,000 typically applies to just one cycle of IVF. If a couple is unsuccessful on that first cycle, they likely will have to pay even more fees for additional cycles.

The end result can be a process that costs upward of $30,000 or even $40,000!

Embryo Donation and Adoption is a process that offers infertile couples (even those who have previously tried IVF and were unsuccessful) a chance at achieving a pregnancy.

Though the cost of Embryo Adoption varies based on many factors (including what agency/clinic you work with), the average fees will also range between $10,000 and $15,000.

But, unlike most IVF treatments, this number includes all facets of the process - including matching services, transportation of the embryos to a clinic near you as well as any legal work that may be done.

Also, many Embryo Adoption programs including Snowflakes Embryo Adoptions, will match couples up to three times. So, if you are unsuccessful achieving a pregnancy with the first embryo match, you can be matched up to two more times - with no additional fees!

Every case will be different for every couple in every program. Anyone navigating the difficult waters of infertility treatment should research all of their options before beginning the process.

To learn more about Embryo Donation and Adoption, visit www.embryoadoption.org.

Have scientists found the male infertility gene?

2011-08-29T13:41:00.001-06:00

Despite decades of research, one of the most confounding mysteries in the world of medicine is what causes male infertility.

In most cases of male infertility, which account for around half of all infertility cases, no cause can be identified. However, research has shown that infertility seems to run in the family, which makes scientists believe that there could be a genetic cause at work.

A recent study conducted by the Pasteur Institute in France and University College London may begin to back up that claim.

Researchers looked at the genetics of 315 men who were unable to produce sperm. In 4 percent of those men, defects in the NR5A1 gene were discovered. This particular gene is heavily involved in the sexual development of both men and women.

While that percentage is very small, these researchers believe that this may be just the beginning of more discoveries relating to genetic causes of infertility, according to the BBC.

That said, the small number of findings also stress how difficult it is to pinpoint an exact cause of male factor infertility.

"Given the complexity of the sperm production process it is likely that many genes are involved and therefore that many gene defects linked to infertility may be found,” Dr Allan Pacey, a senior lecturer in Andrology at the University of Sheffield in England told the BBC.

"Although this gene defect affects only a small number of men, we need more studies like this so that we can fill in the gaps in our knowledge and possibly one day build a robust diagnostic test for male fertility based on genetic,” Pacey said.

You can read more about male and female infertility causes here. Embryo adoption may be the solution for a couple dealing with male infertility factor. For more information on a unique alternative for couples wishing to experience pregnancy, visit The Embryo Adoption Awareness Center at www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Special case embryos lead to a special gift

2011-08-22T08:28:00.002-06:00

The following is a true story of a family who went through the process of embryo donation and adoption.

My husband and I decided to start a family in early 2007. After about 15 months and no pregnancy, we found out that our chances of conceiving on our own was very small. I grieved for the children I’d imagined about for many years and we soon discussed our options. We could always try in vitro fertilization (IVF) but neither one of us really felt drawn to that as an option. We also considered traditional adoption – something we had both been very open to pursuing well before we knew we couldn’t have biological children.

However, there was a third option we looked at – embryo adoption. After a friend was blessed through embryo adoption, we decided pursue it as a way to build our family.

We soon applied for adoption through the National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC). Through the process, we learned that there are nearly 500,000 frozen embryos in the United States and to listen to the mainstream media, embryonic stem cell research is the only useful option for these tiny lives. However, these embryos can be thawed and transferred and given the opportunity to grow and bless countless families. The adoption process was similar to that of any traditional adoption – we went through numerous background checks, home visits, and reference checks. After getting our “all clear”, we had a medical consultation in May 2009 with Dr. Jeffrey Keenan, NEDC director, in Knoxville, TN. During that visit we received medical clearance to proceed with our embryo transfer, which would be scheduled for September 2009.

On July 31, 2009, we received 40 profiles from donor families. I had no idea we would have so many from which to choose and felt overwhelmed at the responsibility that was before us. Of the 40, there were four that were labeled “special consideration embryos”. This was due to some known medical issue with either the biological parents or siblings. We thoughtfully began our selection process picking profiles with similar physical characteristics to our own. One of the special consideration profiles had biological parents with characteristics very similar to Jeremy and me. I researched the issue listed and realized it wasn't that big of a deal so we put them back in the stack and continued to narrow our list. The next day we had narrowed the field of 40 to eight profiles. We left for church that Saturday with the profiles laid out across our coffee table and said we needed to contemplate some more. During that service, we both felt a clear direction on the profile to choose. As walked out of service and moved across the parking lot, I looked at Jeremy and said I knew which ones we were supposed to pick. He looked at me and said “the ones with the heart.” He knew, too. See, the “special consideration” profile, which wasn't at the top of our short list, were listed as such because of siblings born with history of Ventricle Septal Defect (VSD) otherwise known as a hole in the heart. We came home and quickly put the other seven profiles away and started staring at the sheet of paper listing only basic physical characteristics, but to us, this represented our children. Within the next few days it was confirmed that profile #1200 with 13 embryos was now ours.

Our transfer date of September 17 came very fast and we finally got to see the picture of three little embryos thawed out and plumped up, ready for a “womb for rent”. The transfer procedure was completed and we waited for eleven days to get our results.

On September 28, 2009, I received a call from the nurse in Knoxville who said the words that I will never forget – “You are very pregnant!.” My pregnancy hormone level was over three times the minimum they like to see! October 14, 2009 was another milestone day for us. That was the day we saw and heard the heartbeats of our adopted twins growing in my belly. Twins! At only six weeks pregnant, a time when many are just finding out they are expecting, these babies had strong heartbeats - evidence that these are far more than a bunch of cells.

Our precious babies, Grant Louis and Maria Isabel were born on April 17, 2010. While they were about seven weeks ahead of schedule, they were perfect.

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Embryo Adoption Mail Bag- Donor Eggs

2011-08-15T14:00:00.002-06:00

In a recent Facebook message to the EAAC, a friend wanted to know about donating remaining embryos. The egg ‘donor’ they had chosen had a history of producing large quantities of eggs during the retrieval process (upwards of 40 eggs!). Because there potentially could be a large number of remaining embryos the writer was considering their disposition before the eggs were fertilized.

Below are four things couples should consider before using donor eggs to create embryos.

1.) Does your egg donor agreement stipulate that you can determine the disposition options for any remaining embryos created from her egg donation? You will want to be able to control what happens to any remaining embryos. Some egg donor agreements stipulate that embryos created from the donor’s eggs can only be used by you and any other uses must be approved by the donor.

2.) Some clinics offer human egg (oocyte) freezing. You may want to talk with your clinic about this possibility. Then you could create embryos as you need them. Egg freezing is not a perfected process, but some clinics have been successful with the process.

3.) Determining to create only the number of embryos you think you will use will potentially eliminate the need for you to make the difficult decision about what to do with any remaining embryos. Remember, remaining embryos will be genetic siblings to any children to whom you give birth.

How many embryos do you think you need for the number of IVF cycles you plan to complete? On your fresh cycle (the embryos have not yet been frozen) you will only need 2-3 maximum based on the recommendations of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM).

The remainder will be frozen for future pregnancy attempts by you. Each time embryos are thawed, again you only need 2-3 to survive the thaw for the embryo transfer into your womb. If you are working with an outstanding clinic, their success rate for embryos surviving the thaw will be high (70-80%), otherwise the average successful thaw rate hovers around 50%.

4.) Clinics should be very familiar with the tests that the FDA requires in order to donate remaining embryos to another family. They should be advising you BEFORE your embryos are created about all of the options available to you for remaining embryos AND ensuring that all of these options remain available to you by performing the appropriate and required testing.

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Fertility Fallacies Pt. 2

2011-08-08T09:06:00.000-06:00

The following is Pt. 2 in a series of blogs examining common myths in the world of infertility. Please look at last weeks blogs to see Pt. 1.

4) It’s all her.

While a woman’s reproductive system is much more complex than a man’s, infertility is just as likely to be caused by problems with the man. In fact, about one third of infertility cases are caused by complications with the woman. One third of fertility struggles are caused by complications with the man. The remaining third are caused by factors that are unknown or are caused by a combination of issues between the man and the woman. (Five Things You Didn’t Know about Infertility).

5) I’m just too stressed.

Stress is detrimental to health and frequently associated with infertility and therefore should be kept to a minimum, but some studies suggest that stress does not have as much impact on fertility as once was believed (Stress does not hurt chances of success with IVF).

6) Fertility treatments will mean I’ll end up like Kate Gosselin or Octomom.

Fertility specialists have been working to reduce the occurrence of multiple births associated with fertility treatments since the early 1990s. Guidelines on the number of embryos to transfer have reduced the number of “triplet-or-more” pregnancies by more than 70%, with only 2% of Invitro Fertilization (IVF) pregnancies falling in that category in 2008. A current study’s findings encourages single embryo transfers (New study advocates for single embryo transfers).

7) I can’t afford to pursue assisted reproductive technologies.

IVF is expensive. One IVF cycle typically costs between $10,000 and $15,000 and it may take multiple cycles to result in a successful pregnancy. The end result can be a process that costs upward of $30,000 or even $40,000! Some insurance companies will cover some of the expenses, but many view IFV as medically unnecessary.

Embryo Adoption is an alternative that offers infertile couples (even those who have previously tried IVF and were unsuccessful) a chance at achieving a pregnancy. Embryo adoption expenses range from $10,000-$15,000 from a reputable agency, including medical expenses (For more information, see Cost of IVF vs. Cost of Embryo Adoption).

To read more about these fertility myths, please visit the health section of The Huffington Post. To learn more about embryo adoption, visit the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

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Fertility Fallacies Pt. 1

2011-08-01T08:43:00.000-06:00

Issues surrounding getting pregnant can be difficult, and to be honest, downright embarrassing to address at times. While as a society we are becoming more open to discussing such things, many looming questions still exist. Perhaps that’s why a recent study out of New Zealand showed that 74 percent of women visiting a fertility clinic had an insufficient knowledge of fertility.

Here are seven commonly believed fertility fallacies:

1) I can wait until I’m 40.

It is becoming increasingly common for women to wait until their mid to late 30s to focus on family building. In 1970, approximately one percent of first-time mothers were 35 or older. In 2006 this number augmented to roughly 8 percent. This increase and other societal factors may lead women to believe that their fertility can last well into their 40s, but infertility increases with age. Six percent of women ages 20 to 24 struggle with infertility. That number increases to 64 percent who are 40 to 44 years of age. (Eight Fertility Misconceptions).

Assisted reproductive technologies (ART) are extending the age at which women are able to bear children into the 40s and even 50s, but even with those technologies, there comes a point at which a woman’s body is no longer able to carry a child to term. That time is still being defined and redefined as sciences in the reproductive field progress.

2) We shouldn't worry about how long it takes to get pregnant.

Infertility, for people under 35 years old, is the diagnosis after 12 months of regularly attempting to achieve pregnancy without success. Women over the age of 35 or with gynecologic or medical conditions (such as diabetes, or thyroid issues) should consult with a specialist after 6 months of unsuccessful attempts.

3) We are making attempts to get pregnant often enough.

A very fertile couple in their 20s and in excellent health has a 25 percent chance of conceiving with perfectly timed intercourse in any given month. This success rate drops to 10 to 15 percent in a month if a pregnancy isn’t achieved in three months, and further decreases to five percent or less after a year.
Because of these odds, specialists recommend having intercourse every 24 to 48 hours during the most fertile four to five days in a woman’s cycle.

Stay tuned for Pt. 2 next week.

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The New Infertility Community

2011-07-25T09:15:00.000-06:00

In the past, infertility was not something that was easily and openly talked about. Fast forward to 2011, while it’s still a sensitive subject for many families struggling to get pregnant, infertility is quickly becoming less and less of a taboo subject.

One main source of the growth of communication surrounding infertility has been the explosion of social media. Now, instead of thinking they are the only people going through it, couples all over the globe have been opened up to the reality that they are not alone in the world of infertility.

One popular source for information and support with difficulties conceiving a child is online infertility support groups. A quick Google search yields a list of more than 1.3 million results on the subject. Websites like DailyStrength.org and FertilityCommunity.com allow users to join anonymously and share what they are going through. With discussions revolving around all different experiences with infertility, support groups are a great way to share your joys, pains and everything in between. Most websites even have discussions of several different topics ranging from adoption and infertility, in vitro fertilization and even embryo donation and adoption.

Likely the fastest growing sources of infertility information on the web are fertility blogs. Families who once may have kept their fertility struggle hidden are now sharing their hearts and experiences with all who want to know. Blogs are a great way for those beginning their fertility journey to see the journey of those who have gone before them.

A relatively new form of communication in the world of infertility has come from video blogging via websites like YouTube. Now, instead of just reading about people’s experiences, you are now able to see them first hand. One such example of a video blog comes from Jimmy and Christine Moore who are continually documenting their journey through embryo adoption. From taking fertility shots to visiting the doctor and even sharing some heart break, the Moores have put their life on display for all to see and learn from.

Even the Awareness Center is developing the art of social networking on behalf of embryo donation and adoption. Please continue to visit our blog, search for us on Facebook, Twitter and even watch our videos on YouTube.

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Coping with the Empty Ache of Infertility

2011-07-18T08:42:00.001-06:00

Couples who have struggled with infertility know how tightly grief holds infertility’s hand. According to Brad Johnson of Focus on the Family (The Grief of Infertility), a global organization focusing on helping families thrive, “Grief is a real part of infertility. It may be heightened in miscarriages or stillbirths, but it is just as real when a couple cannot conceive.” Mr. Johnson goes on to say that the sense of loss an infertile couple experiences can be as deep as the grief they would have felt if a parent passes away.

While the grief is real, the road through infertility is often a lonely one. Even when the struggles and heartaches are shared with family or friends, they may not know what to say. Well intended questions from friends about plans for family building easily turn into stinging remarks. Announcements of pregnancy or births can remind couples of the missed opportunities and leave a sense of envy. Regularly occurring events, such as walking past an empty nursery or a menstrual cycle can easily cause the pain to resurface. Few Hallmark cards line the store shelves offering condolences for such missed opportunities and even if they did, they would likely feel trite.

The unfulfilled desire to build a family can become overwhelming. Lisa Brock, also of Focus on the Family, shares that there are a few ways to make it a little easier (Coping with Infertility).

Recognize Your Emotions
The sense of grief, despair, envy and failure are real, even if a couple is grieving a child they’ve never conceived. Acknowledging and facing the emotions is the first step to a healthier outlook.

Seek Support
While infertility can feel like a lonely road to walk, 7.3 million other individuals in the United States (or roughly 10% of reproductive age couples) struggle with infertility (Infertility Causes and Treatments). Online and in-person support groups offer opportunities for couples to meet others who have faced the same struggles while walking through the pain of infertility together. Many of these support groups also offer opportunities to explore if infertility treatments are the right fit for a couple.

Face your depression
The heartache of infertility leads to depression for almost all couples struggling to conceive (Coping with Infertility). Untreated depression and stress can also lower fertility rates. Seeking to reduce stress and feelings of despair while increasing enjoyment in life will help couples hope again.

Choose Carefully
The desire to build a family may make it difficult to determine the right path. In vitro fertilization and other medical advances have made it possible for more than 80% of couples previously struggling with infertility to become pregnant (Coping with Infertility). These medical advances do not, however, come without difficult ethical dilemmas. For a couple seeking to experience the joys (and challenges!) of pregnancy, embryo adoption, an exciting new adoption option may provide a solution to their infertility and their yearning for building a family. Embryo adoption is adoption at the earliest developmental stage. Through embryo adoption, the adoptive mother gives birth to her adopted child.

To learn more about embryo donation and adoption visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

To read more about coping with the grief of infertility, please visit Focus on the Family’s website.

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Child born from 20 year old embryo

2011-07-11T08:32:00.000-06:00

Medical barriers are conquered every day, even in the world of embryo donation and adoption.

In an October 2010 Popular Science article, Mara Hvistendahl reports that a 42-year-old American woman gave birth to a baby boy, an event not terribly uncommon. The amazing part, the boy came from an embryo that had been cryo-preserved for the previous 20 years.

The unidentified mother of the record-breaking baby boy had been unsuccessfully attempting In Vitro Fertilization since she was 32-years-old. After receiving donated embryos from an anonymous couple, the woman underwent a successful Frozen Embryo Transfer, became pregnant and 9 months later gave birth to her son.

The embryo donor parents underwent IVF in 1990. After giving birth to a child, they then decided to cryo-preserve the remaining embryos for future donation.

Popular Science explains that the new born boy is a record setter and that no child had previously been born from an embryo frozen that long.

The successful birth of the 20 year old embryo opens new doors to the shelf life of frozen embryos and gives further potential to the older of the estimated 500,000 embryos in frozen storage.

For more information on the child born from the 20-year-old embryo visit popsci.com. To learn more about the process of embryo donation and adoption, please visit our website at EmbryoAdoption.org

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Stop Stressing about Stress

2011-07-05T09:17:00.003-06:00

Embryo Development? There’s an App for That!

2011-06-27T08:57:00.002-06:00

The intricacy of human life in the earliest stages of biological development has been truly fascinating to scientists, educators, and prospective parents since before the development of sciences that would allow for an accurate understanding of what happens in a woman’s womb during pregnancy. Now the latest sciences regarding the normal development of human embryos is being placed in the hands of the general public – literally.

ITunes recently introduced a free new app that allows iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad users to tap into the Virtual Human Embryo, a wealth of knowledge on embryo development, derived from the Carnegie Embryo Collection.

According to iTunes “The Embryo App uses mobile telecommunication and multimedia technologies to add interactive capabilities to the digital information, enhancing our understanding of embryo development. This App is part of the National Library of Medicine’s program to fulfill the NLM’s role as a provider of medical, science and health care information using mobile technologies.”

The Embryo App may be of special interest to parents and embryo adoptive parents as it features:
• videos illustrating human fertilization
• photo micrographs of the first 23 stages of embryo development
•2-D and 3-D digital images of the early developmental stages, utilizing visual stack dissections
• a pregnancy calculator
• other related resources

For more information or to download the Embryo App, please visit the iTunes website.

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Busting Myths about Embryo Adoption

2011-06-20T08:48:00.002-06:00

Below is a list of myths people commonly hold about the process of embryo donation and adoption. Are they true or is it just a rumor? Find out as we explore four commonly held myths.

Myth- Embryo donation and adoption should really just be called Embryo Donation because it is not truly an adoption.

Busted!- Many adoption agencies find that placing or donating parents tend to use the term 'donation', while receiving or adopting couples tend to use the term 'adoption'. The basis for this is largely psychological. Donation is used in the sense of 'giving a gift' and offers an emotional separation from the embryos that the phrase 'placing for adoption' does not. Yet for the family wanting to parent the children born from such a gift, the term 'adoption' makes more emotional sense. It is the term that both legally and socially explains the transfer of parental rights associated with traditional adoption. ‘Adoption’ also helps to describe and explain to their child the way in which they became a family, since children are 'adopted' rather than 'donated'. Frequently the terms are used interchangeably like the words lawyer and attorney.

Furthermore the successful end result of an embryo donation is the birth of a child. This child is not genetically related to her parents and is now a member of their family. This is generally understood to be an adoption throughout the world.

Myth- Embryo donation and adoption is just as expensive as other forms of adoption.

Busted! Embryo adoption is a low-cost family building alternative when compared to domestic and international adoption, repeated IVF cycles and the cost of donor eggs. The embryo donor does not receive payment for their embryos. The most exciting aspect of embryo adoption is that you have the opportunity to give birth to your adopted child! On average an embryo adoption will cost between $10,000-$15,000.

In the United States the adoption of children in the foster care system is generally the least expensive form of adoption but it is more difficult to adopt infants in this program.

Myth- Embryo Donation and Adoption could lead to an “Octomom” situation.

Busted! While embryo donation has resulted in parents giving birth to twins and even triplets in the past, best practices are in place to limit the risk of multiple-birth pregnancies.

Adopting families should limit the number of embryos transferred to the number that they are willing to carry to term in the event that all the embryos implant. Due to the high-risk nature of a multiple pregnancy, most doctors recommend limiting the number of embryos transferred to no more than three embryos at a time. Adopting families should discuss this with their doctor prior to their scheduled embryo transfer. The American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) also provides members with transfer guidelines based on the woman's age.

Myth- Donor Parents can regain custody of children born from the embryos they donated to an adoptive family.

Busted- Before the adopting family takes possession of the donated embryos, legal documents are signed in which the donor parents relinquish their parental rights. This occurs before the embryos are transferred into the adoption mother’s womb.

At the time of birth the adoptive couple is fully recognized as the legal parents to any children who are born. The mother who physically gives birth is recognized as the legal mother and the man to whom she is married at the time of pregnancy and birth is recognized as the legal father of the child(ren). These individuals are noted as the legal mother and legal father on the birth certificate(s).

Furthermore, some couples will finalize their embryo adoption in a local court as is done in a domestic or international adoption. In Georgia the option to finalize an embryo adoption in court was passed by the state legislature in May 2009.

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Is cell phone use really linked to infertility in men?

2011-06-13T14:46:00.002-06:00

Infertility has many different causes. Some are genetic, some are health-related and others have to do with lifestyle, exercise, etc.

But other potential “causes” of infertility are a bit more surprising. Including… using your cell phone?

Several studies have been completed in recent years showing that high cell phone use could negatively affect a man’s sperm count, increasing the likelihood of him struggling with infertility.

A 2006 study released by the American Society of Reproductive Medicine showed a 25 percent lower sperm count in men who used their cell phones for over four hours a day as opposed to men who did not use cell phones at all.

The men who had high cell phone use also showed decreased sperm quality – including reduced ability of the sperm to swim, according to the Daily Mail.

Experts recommend that men spend as little time on their hand-held phones as possible, particularly being aware of where their phone is located when transmitting text messages.

Men should also be aware of increased heating due to carrying cell phones in their pockets. In 2008, researchers at the Center for Reproductive Medicine at the Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio found that radiation from cell phones can decrease sperm viability as well.

This research showed that semen placed close to a cellular phone for one hour had lowered motility (ability to move and swim) as well as viability (ability to survive).

Reproductive endocrinologist Sami David told WebMD that men should always be aware of how their daily routines may be affecting their fertility – and it’s not just cell phones, either.

"Men should not place their laptop on their laps due to the heat from the battery," Dr. David tells WebMD. "Jacuzzis, tub baths, toxins, and fumes can all play a role in male infertility and should be discussed.”

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10 things you may not know about Embryo Donation and Adoption

2011-06-06T12:49:00.001-06:00

The complex causes of infertility

2011-05-31T11:02:00.003-06:00

One of the newer and more unique options for infertile couples is Embryo Donation and Adoption. In this fertility alternative, an adoptive couple is able to "adopt" embryos that were created by another couple during IVF.

The adoptive couple then uses those embryos in their own attempt to achieve a pregnancy. Unlike traditional adoption, the adoptive couple actually gets to experience the joy of pregnancy and give birth to their adopted child.

Even couples who have tried some infertility treatments (such as IVF) and were unsuccessful may find success with Embryo Adoption. They simply must have no contraindications to carrying a pregnancy to term.

Have you or anyone you know pursued an Embryo Donation/Adoption? Leave us a comment and let us know.

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Are remaining frozen human embryos destined for destruction?

2011-05-23T14:21:00.000-06:00

People today may be under the impression that the 500,000+ human embryos currently in frozen storage in the United States are simply destined to be destroyed and therefore are readily available for any use.

Actually, couples with remaining embryos from their In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatments have several options for the disposition of those embryos:

1.) Use them for their own family building

2.) Donate them to another couple for family building

3.) Donate them to science

4.) Keep them frozen indefinitely

5.) Discard them

A public opinion survey carried out in June of 2009 showed a majority of respondents from the general public preferred donation to another couple as a disposition choice. In fact, 68.8 percent prefer the embryos be donated to another couple for family building, while 19.5 percent prefer donation to scientific research.

The survey, "Public Opinion Regarding the Disposition of Frozen Human Embryos," also found that nearly twice as many people (82.2 percent) had heard about embryo donation to stem cell research in the past six months than had heard about embryos being donated to another couple (37.1 percent).

Many embryos remain in frozen storage because the couple who had them created has now completed their family building. They know that the children they now have in their family are the genetic siblings of these same embryos – which gives them a special connection to the remaining embryos. This knowledge can lead to difficulty in determining the best disposition option for the remaining embryos.

The family for whom the embryos were created owns them and will decide their ultimate fate. For embryo adoption proponents, the good news is that, according to this survey, 68.8 percent of the general public would prefer the embryos be donated to another couple for family building, while 19.5 % would prefer donation to scientific research.

To read the entire results of the public opinion survey, click here. To find out more about Embryo Donation and Adoption, visit the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

Rock-a-bye.... embryo?

2011-05-16T08:22:00.000-06:00

As bizarre as it might sound, researchers at the University of Michigan have shown embryos that are gently “rocked” during the process of in vitro fertilization (IVF) may actually have a better chance of resulting in a successful pregnancy.

Gary Smith, a professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, together with a team of researchers at the university, designed a device that imitates the experience an embryo would have in the fallopian tube during a natural pregnancy.

The device creates natural motion for the embryos, similar to what an embryo would normally experience while travelling through the mother’s body.

This particular study, carried out using embryos from mice, showed that embryos that were rocked during IVF led to pregnancy 77 percent of the time, as opposed to 55 percent of the embryos that were not rocked.

The results seem to indicate that embryos respond to the environment they are stored in before they are transferred to the woman’s uterus. These particular researches believe this information could be ground-breaking in terms of how embryos are stored and dealt with in the future of IVF.

“One of our goals for years now has been to modify how we grow embryos in the lab to be more like how they grow in the human body, because we know that the human body grows them most efficiently," Smith told LiveScience.

This research could lead to major improvements to infertility treatment. The current success rate of IVF - a costly and many times difficult treatment - is only around 35 percent.

"If we could increase that, even just to 45 percent, that's significant," said Smith.

Read the full story from LiveScience here.

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Embryo Adoption Questions Answered- The Home Study Process

2011-05-09T14:21:00.001-06:00

This week’s topic: Embryo Adoption Home Studies

Q: Why should a home study be required during the process of Embryo Donation and Adoption?

A: The importance of the home study is to help couples not only have healthy children, but healthy families.

An adoptive home study for the recipients of donated embryos ensures that the safeguards currently in place for traditional adoption also protect the child, the placing parents and the receiving parents in an embryo adoption situation.

Despite the fact that the adoptive mother gives physical birth to a child from an embryo donation, that child is still an adopted child; he or she shares no genetic relation to the adoptive mother or father. When children are born into a family whom they are not genetically related, they may have the same types of questions as those children adopted through traditional means.

‘Embryo adoption’ programs treat the process as just that – an adoption. This means the same protections and guidelines set in place for traditional adoption – home studies, legal contracts, post-adoption support and education – are applied to the embryo recipient/adopter. This process also protects the donor. It provides information about the family receiving their embryos and allows both couples to have input regarding how much communication there will be between the families following the exchange of the embryos.

Q: What does the home study process consist of?

A: The home study process is 20% screening and 80% education. It provides the adoptive family with an opportunity to learn about and anticipate these types of issues and questions. The home study also educates the parents of the best way to address and even answer these questions with sensitivity to the needs of the child.

The home study process benefits donating parents by assuring them that the adopting family was:

• evaluated for any health issues that may affect their ability to care for and raise a child.
• screened for any criminal and child abuse issues
• educated concerning the potential issues of parenting a non-genetically related child

Q: How can an adopting family find a local agency to conduct their home study?

A: For most embryo adoption programs, a traditional domestic home study is all that is required. It is best to find a private licensed adoption agency to work with because most state agencies or social services departments do not perform pre-placement home studies, and the ones who do most often will not provide a copy to an outside agency. You can find a list of agencies in your area on the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center website.

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Embryo Adoption - Coming To an Agency Near You

2011-05-02T08:47:00.001-06:00

Embryo Adoption is a relatively new phenomenon. This unique adoption and infertility option allows couples to “adopt” embryos created by another couple during an In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) process and use those embryos in their own attempt to achieve pregnancy.

The first Embryo Adoption agency in the U.S. was the Snowflakes program run by Nightlight Christian Adoptions in Southern California. Snowflakes assisted in its first Embryo Adoption in 1997.

Since then, many other agencies have become involved with this adoption alternative. Some of those agencies have even started their own Embryo Adoption Program.

So who are these agencies? And how do their programs differ from one another? Let’s take a brief look at the eight Embryo Adoption agencies in the U.S. today, listed in order of how long they have been in existence:

Snowflakes Embryo Adoption
• Works nationwide.
• Arranges transportation of donated embryos to recipient family’s clinic.
• Matching services and legal paperwork included.

Embryos Alive
• Works nationwide.
• No home study is required.
• Dossier required in lieu of home study.

National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC)
• Centrally located in Tennessee.
• Frozen Embryo Transfers performed at the NEDC clinic.
• Embryo Storage services available.

Bethany Christian Services
• Services provided through 70 offices nationwide.
• Home Study is required through Bethany.

Adoption and Fertility Resources
• Based in Kansas City, MO but works with families nationwide.
• Recipient receives FET at clinic where embryos were created.
• Finalized legal adoption required when possible.

Embryo Adoption Services of Cedar Park
• Based in Washington state, services available nationwide.
• A Christian organization.
• Social workers available for assistance with home study.

Crystal Angels Embryo Adoption Services
• Works nationwide.
• Openness determined by two parties involved.

Blessed With Infertility
• Works nationwide.
• Assisting with embryo shipping.

You can read more about each of these programs - and find contact information - on our website.

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Embryo Adoption Questions Answered- Fertility Clinics and Embryo Donation and Adoption

2011-04-25T09:40:00.000-06:00

Q: What if our fertility clinic (or we) wants to move our embryos to long-term storage at a cryo-bank?

Some clinics have time limits regarding storage of your embryos at their facility. After that time limit has expired they may require you to move your embryos to an off-site facility (a cryo-bank) or give you the option to have your embryos discarded.

If you, or your clinic, are considering moving your frozen embryos to a cryo-bank it is critical for you to understand the rules governing the storage of your embryos and your ability to have your embryos returned to your control and possession.

Q: Are there limits regarding the length of time donated embryos can be frozen?

Healthy children have been born from embryos that had been frozen for more than 19 years. Most experienced embryo adoption agencies will not stipulate a maximum cryo-preservation time limit.
They generally will accept all embryo donations regardless of the genetic mother's age, length of storage, medical grading or stage of embryo development. All of these items will be disclosed to the potential adopting family as a part of the matching process.

Q: What possible benefit could there be for a clinic to become involved with an embryo adoption?

Since many infertile couples desire to experience pregnancy, but do not want to create new embryos through IVF, embryo donation and adoption is another fertility treatment that clinics can offer their patients. Some clinics may choose to partner with adoption agencies to create a working embryo adoption program providing medical, legal and social protections.

When a clinic chooses to partner with an adoption agency the benefits positively impact both the clinic's patients and the clinic business. This partnership can move future liability regarding embryo placement issues from the clinic to the agency. The agency maintains the social, emotional and legal education and documentation of embryo adoption.

Q: What type of patient medical information will a clinic receive about donating parents and their embryos?

The clinic will receive Infectious disease screening results (an FDA requirement), embryology reports, as well as embryo freezing and thawing protocols. It is likely that the embryo donation/adoption program a clinic’s patients are working with will be able to contact the donating parents and their clinic to obtain additional information as necessary.

Q: What are the current FDA requirements for blood tests?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published regulations regarding human tissue donation that effects embryo donation and adoption. On May 25, 2004, the FDA published final rules addressing donor testing/ screening and good tissue practice. The FDA subsequently issued an interim final rule on May 25, 2005, which amended certain sections of those regulations. For additional information on the rule, see the FDA's web site Question and Answer section at:
http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/TissueSafety/ucm095440.htm

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Embryo Adoption Questions Answered- How are Adoption Agencies involved in Embryo Adoption?

2011-04-18T09:04:00.001-06:00

Q: What roles may an adoption agency fulfill in the embryo adoption/donation process?

A: Phase One: The process starts usually with an initial inquiry from a family either desiring to place their embryos for adoption or to adopt embryos.

Staff should generally be in place that can answer the resulting questions and prepare and mail program information packets and applications. When applications are received, they should be reviewed and approved by an assigned adoption social worker who reads the home assessment (in the case of an adoptive family), interviews the client to discuss matching criteria and address and resolve any issues concerning the placement or adoption of the embryo(s) prior to the family being approved for participation in the program.
Phase Two: Both the donating and adopting families establish their criteria for a successful match which will lead to an embryo placement and adoption. A matching process initiates.

Once a successful match has been made, each set of parent’s drafts and signs contracts; embryos are shipped to the adopting family's clinic, and the adopting family is then able to schedule their frozen embryo transfer (FET). Depending on the form and frequency of any on-going contact between the families, an agency or attorney may need to continue to act as intermediary for such contact. There is also the possibility that additional matches and contracts will need to be performed if an adopting family does not use all of the donating family's embryos.

Q: What are the advantages of participating in an adoptive home study assessment?

A: The importance of the home study lies in its purpose to help couples have not only healthy children, but healthy families.

An adoptive home study for the recipient couple ensures that the safeguards currently in place for traditional adoption also protect the child, the placing parents and the receiving parents in an embryo adoption situation.
Despite the fact that the adoptive mother gives physical birth to a child from an embryo donation, that child is still an adopted child; he or she shares no genetic relation to the adoptive mother or father. When children are born into a family to whom they are not genetically related, they will have the same types of questions as those of children adopted through traditional means. The home study process is 20% screening and 80% education. It provides the adoptive family with an opportunity, to learn about and anticipate these types of issues and questions. The home study also educates the parents in the best way to address and answer these questions with sensitivity to the needs of the child.

Since the home study process provides the donating parents with assurance about their embryos' prospective parents, they are also benefited. This assurance includes:

the adopting family has been evaluated for any health issues that may affect their ability to care for and raise a child,
has been screened for any criminal and child abuse issues,
has been educated concerning the potential issues of parenting a non-genetically related child

Q: At what point is an embryo adoption considered finalized?

A: Although there is little or no precedence on this issue, the language of the written agreement affecting the transfer of ownership in the embryos may specify that the adoption is deemed to have occurred at the point of thawing and implantation of the embryos into the adoptive mother's womb.

Visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org for more information.

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Embryo Adoption Questions Answered- Legal Requirements of Embryo Adoption

2011-04-11T08:27:00.001-06:00

Q: What are the most significant legal issues associated with embryo adoption?

A: The most significant legal issue associated with embryo donation and adoption relates to 1.) The unsettled nature of embryo adoption law and 2.) The contractual agreements used to legally bind donor and recipient couples.

First, both the donor and recipient couples should acknowledge that the law of embryo donation and adoption is unsettled. There are no federal or state laws specifically governing the adoption of embryos although some states do have laws generally related to embryo donation and or assisted reproductive technology.

Second, the embryo donation and adoption process involves adoption and agreement and relinquishment forms, which are legal contracts between the donor and recipient couples. These forms formalize the genetic parental relinquishment of their parental rights prior to the embryo being transferred to the receiving mother. Once transferred, the embryos belong to the adopting parents. Parties involved should also note that the embryos have a special legal status that is yet to be clearly defined. While many courts are reluctant to classify embryos as property, they also do not characterize them as human beings. As a result, embryo adoption programs may differ in how they define embryos in their legal agreements. Some may refer to embryo donation as a transfer of property while others may incorporate traditional adoption language into their legal documents.

Q: What laws govern embryo adoption?

A: In the United States, embryos are considered property, not people and therefore the ‘owners’ (the donor) of the embryos transfer the ownership to the recipient family via contract law.

In Georgia, legislation was passed in May 2009 granting embryo adoption parents the right to finalize their
adoption in court.

In Louisiana, embryos are considered ‘juridical persons’ which meant: Entity (such as a firm) other than a natural person (human being) created by law and recognized as a legal entity having distinct identity, legal personality, and duties and rights. Also called artificial person, juridical entity, juristic person, or legal person.

Q: Is it legal for the donor to request reimbursement for their IVF expenses as part of their donation?

A: The term ‘donation’ implies that the embryos are being given, without charge, to the recipient. Since the inception of embryo adoption through adoption agencies, donors have not received compensation for their embryo donation.

When a couple determines to pursue IVF treatments, they are making that choice as a direct benefit to themselves. Most often, a couple with remaining embryos has them because excess embryos were created as a part of their IVF treatment. They have now completed their family building and are choosing a disposition for their remaining embryos.

Any sort of direct compensation for embryos themselves is under the legal jurisdiction of each state, and interested parties should seek legal advice to determine the applicable laws in their state. In general, such payments are NOT recommended b the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) or the American Medical Association (AMA) on ethical grounds.

Visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org for more information.

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Five Reasons You Might Consider Embryo Donation and Adoption

2011-04-04T08:47:00.001-06:00

If you have been paying attention to the latest trends in adoption and infertility options, then you’ve probably heard plenty about Embryo Donation and Adoption.

This unique alternative allows couples to “adopt” embryos that were created by another couple through the process of In Vitro Fertilization. The process is handled by many organizations just like a traditional adoption - with the same legal, social and medical safeguards in place.

But what may not be quite as clear to you is why families would choose this option. There are many reasons, but let’s take a look at five of the more common ones:

1. Infertility
According to the American Fertility Association, one in seven couples in the U.S. will face some form of infertility. Many of these couples begin researching their many fertility options.

These options may include In Vitro Fertilization, Intrauterine insemination (IUI), egg donation or fertility medicine. However, Embryo Donation and Adoption is typically less expensive than these treatments, and allows a couple to avoid creating even more excess embryos through their own IVF procedure.

2. The desire to experience pregnancy
Some couples have decided infertility treatments are not for them. These couples may pursue adoption - whether it be domestic, international or through foster care.

But many couples are finding out that there is one other type of adoption available to them - Embryo Adoption. This not only gives the couple the same type of process as traditional adoption but also allows them to experience pregnancy and give birth to their adopted child.

3. Concern for Embryos
For many couples, embryos are viewed not just as human tissue, but as potential human lives. These couples may view Embryo Adoption as an opportunity to give embryos remaining from other families’ IVF cycles a chance at life.

Today there are an estimated 500,000 frozen embryos in storage in the U.S. alone.

4. Fear of passing on Genetic Diseases
Although a lesser known segment of the population, there are those couples who carry a genetic disease that they are fearful of passing on to their offspring. For these couples, Embryo Adoption enables them to build a family and experience pregnancy without this risk.

5. Gives adopter control over prenatal period
As opposed to traditional adoption, where couples adopt a child following birth, Embryo Adoption affords an adoptive couple the ability to control the prenatal environment of their adopted child. Not only is this a unique bonding experience for the parents, but also allows them to do everything in their control to ensure a healthy and successful pregnancy.

Of course, there are plenty of other reasons why families would pursue this option. What are some of the reasons people you know have chosen Embryo Donation and Adoption?

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New Soy-based supplement may help fight infertility

2011-03-28T08:45:00.000-06:00

Among the hundreds of advertised cures for infertility, one experimental treatment from England is showing significant potential.

Doctor George Ndukwe of the Care Fertility Clinic in Nottingham, England has found a way to improve conception rates in women using a soy based liquid, Intralipid, which is commonly used for tube-feeding very sick patients. The liquid is a fat and calorie rich potion that reportedly aids a woman’s immune system.

According to a January article in the Daily Mail, Ndukwe believes that 1 in 4 women struggling with infertility suffer from a faulty immune system due to extra high levels of white blood cells that fight potential pregnancy by triggering harmful chemicals in the body. Intraplipid is believed to help control the production of these chemicals.

The article continues to explain that tests results of Intraplipid have been significantly positive so far. Using a group of women who had failed to become pregnant in an average of six IVF attempts each, half became pregnant.

“The infusion is inexpensive, well tolerated and easy to administer,” Ndukwe added in the article.

Intraplipid could assist families trying to conceive children through infertility treatments, including the process of Embryo Donation and Adoption. During an Embryo Adoption, families adopt donated frozen embryos which are then transferred to the mother’s womb in hopes of achieving pregnancy. The ultimate goal is for the mother to give birth to her adopted child.

To read the complete story of Intralplid, please visit the Daily Mail website. To learn more about the unique option of Embryo Donation and Adoption visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Is Infertility on the Rise?

2011-03-21T09:16:00.002-06:00

With overwhelming news, information and treatments available on the topic these days, it’s easy to feel like infertility is becoming a greater problem by the second.

But according to experts, infertility rates have actually remained fairly stable over the past two decades.

In Dr. John Gordon and Dr. Michael DiMattina’s book, “100 Questions & Answers About Infertility,” the authors explore the reality of infertility rates in the U.S.

The doctors refer to infertility as an “extraordinarily common disorder.” But they also point out that infertility rates in the U.S. have remained about the same since the late 1980s.

This news follows a period of decreased fertility rates in the early 1980s, although many believe this is mostly due to the increased number of women who reached their reproductive age at that time.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the U.S. infertility rate also grew, likely due to an increase in pelvic inflammatory disease in women, which can cause damage to the fallopian tubes.

But today the infertility rate - although surprisingly high - seems to be leveling out. So why do we get the feeling infertility is skyrocketing? Doctors Gordon and DiMattina suggest three reasons for this phenomenon.

Number one, society is much more open in discussing fertility issues today than they were even 10 or 15 years ago. There are many organizations serving infertile couples, far more information available on the causes of infertility and an abundance of outlets - including on the internet - for infertile couples to turn to for support and resources.

Secondly, women in today’s Western society are waiting longer to start their families. According to research, the average age for women beginning to build a family has risen above 30 - when Infertility rates naturally increase due to the normal process of aging.

Finally, some of the stigma that used to exist surrounding infertility treatments - such as In Vitro Fertilization or Embryo Donation and Adoption - is beginning to decrease, the doctors say. This means more couples are actively pursuing treatment and are less afraid to talk about it with friends and family.

So the good news, according to these experts, is that the infertility rate is not increasing. The bad news, of course, is that infertility is still a major problem for millions of couples in the U.S. and around the world.

Read more about the option of Embryo Donation and Adoption here.

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New study advocates for single embryo transfers

2011-03-14T08:31:00.001-06:00

There is a saying that it is not wise to put all one’s eggs in the same basket. Perhaps the same might be true for embryos.

A recent article in U.S. News and World Report explains that women undergoing In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) may have a higher rate of full term pregnancy when transferring one embryo at a time - as opposed to multiple embryo transfers. Among the advantages of a single embryo transfer are notably higher percentages of full term pregnancies and a lower risk of low birth weights.

According to an analysis of nearly 1,400 embryo transfers by researchers at the University of Aberdeen, women in the study who had a single embryo transferred were five times more likely to give birth to a single healthy baby. Additionally the study showed that single embryo transfer pregnancies are significantly more likely to carry a pregnancy to a full 37 weeks.

Evidence in the study does show that women having a double embryo transfer have a higher rate of pregnancy, 42%, compared to a 27% percent pregnancy rate. When a woman underwent a second single embryo transfer during the study, their pregnancy rate jumped to 38%.

“Our review should be useful in informing decision-making regarding the number of embryos to transfer in IVF,” Aberdeen researchers said in the U.S. News and World Report article, adding that these findings could help to shape practical guidelines for would-be mothers and doctors.

The study could have significant impact when it comes to Embryo Donation and Adoption, a relatively new form of adoption in which families adopt frozen embryos. The end goal of embryo donation and adoption is for adoptive families to give birth to their adopted child.

To read more about Embryo Donation and Adoption please visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Couples Find Financial Help for Infertility

2011-03-07T08:53:00.000-07:00

Infertility is not an isolated struggle. According to the CDC, over 16 percent of U.S. married couples of reproductive age are infertile. That means there are millions of American couples who face this difficult challenge.

Unfortunately, costs for infertility treatments - everything from In Vitro Fertilization to Intrauterine insemination (IUI) to egg donation - continue to skyrocket. And in many cases, insurance will not cover a portion or any - of a couples’ treatment. This financial burden makes the struggle with infertility even more difficult for millions of couples.

The good news is that help is out there. Today there are a handful of organizations whose mission is to assist couples in funding their fertility treatments. One such organization is the Pay It Forward Fertility Foundation.

Pay it Forward is a non-profit organization that provides North Carolina couples with grants to reduce the cost of fertility treatments. The organization was started by a couple who had gone through a successful IVF treatment and wanted to help others achieve success too.

Each year, Pay It Forward accepts applications from families who are seeking infertility treatment. While grant numbers and amounts vary from year to year, the foundation raised $50,000 in 2010 alone to assist infertile couples.

One of the fertility treatments Pay It Forward Foundation’s grants can be used for is Embryo Adoption. This unique alternative allows infertile couples to receive donated embryos from another family who has gone through IVF.

In general, Embryo Adoption is a much cheaper alternative than IVF or Egg Donation, with the average costs totaling somewhere between $8,000 and $15,000. This includes the matching process, legal contracts, (in some cases) the transportation of embryos between clinics, as well as the medical fees associated with the Frozen Embryo Transfer.

And with help from organizations like Pay It Forward, an option like Embryo Adoption can be even more affordable for infertile couples - especially in comparison with other costly treatments.

Several other organizations similar to Pay It Forward exist in the U.S. today. These include Fertile Dreams, Angels of Hope Foundation, and The Cade Foundation. Couples who are pursuing infertility treatments - including Embryo Adoption - are encouraged to research programs like these for financial assistance.

For more information on the costs and benefits of Embryo Adoption, visit The Embryo Adoption Awareness Center today.

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Laughing your way to a successful pregnancy

2011-02-28T08:12:00.001-07:00

Infertility issues are not usually considered a laughing matter, but a new study out of Israel may change that.

According to researchers, women who laugh shortly after an embryo transfer show higher rates of successful implantation. The study, appearing in the journal of Fertility and Sterility was comprised of 219 women undergoing In Vitro Fertilization (IVF).

Researchers concluded that women who were entertained by a professional “medical clown” shortly after having embryos implanted showed a nearly 16% higher rate of pregnancy than the comedy-free patients.

Dr. Shevach Friedler, from the Assaf Harofeh Medical Center in Zrifin, Israel, told Reuters.com that he got the idea for the study after reading about the natural benefits of laughing.

“Patients suffering from infertility and undergoing IVF are exceptionally stressed,” he said. “So I thought that this intervention could be beneficial for them at crucial moments after embryo transfer.”

The “medical clown”, dressed in a chef’s hat and a bow tie, visited patients shortly after an embryo transfer and entertained them for 15 minutes while performing a specially designed comedy routine consisting of jokes, tricks and even magic. His goal is to reduce the considerable stress patients are experiencing.

While unproven, it’s safe to assume the “medical clown technique” could have positive results for couples going through the process of Embryo Donation and Adoption, a new and exciting adoption option. Like IVF, embryo donation and adoption requires an embryo transfer. Adopted families transfer donated embryos, in the hopes of achieving pregnancy and giving birth to an adopted child.

To learn more about embryo donation and adoption visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Study shows IVF more successful in spring

2011-02-22T08:22:00.001-07:00

Spring has always been a season for new life, even for humans.

According to a 2010 Health 24 Magazine article, Brazilian researchers have announced the results of a study concluding that human fertilization rates are highest in the spring, nearly 5% higher than winter fertility rates and slightly above summer and fall rates.

“Epidemiologists have demonstrated a seasonal distribution in human natural conception and birth rates,” said study author Daniela Braga in the September 15 article. “We observed a 1.45-fold increase in the fertilization rate during the spring,”

Health 24 goes onto explain that the Brazilian study followed 1,932 women undergoing egg retrieval for in vitro fertilization. Of these women, 435 had egg retrieval in the winter, 444 in the spring, 469 in the summer and 584 during the autumn. Women who had their egg retrievals in the spring had by far the most successful rate of fertilization at 73.5%.

While blood levels of estradiol (the predominant sex hormone found in females) stayed consistent throughout all four seasons, researchers found that the concentrated estradiol levels per number of eggs were much higher in the spring. This might possibly explain the higher spring fertility rate.

Even with study results on his side, Braga (the Brazilian Researcher) doesn’t suggest waiting for the perfect season to try for a pregnancy. “Despite the better results obtained in the spring, it is important to highlight that assisted reproduction techniques are effective regardless of the season in which the treatment is being preformed,” she said.

One relatively new option for couples struggling with infertility is embryo donation and adoption, which allows the couple to receive remaining embryos from another couples IVF treatment and use them in an attempt to achieve pregnancy.

Further information about Embryo Adoption is available at www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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IVF Innovator Awarded the Nobel Prize

2011-02-14T08:06:00.001-07:00

October, 2010 was good to the creator In Vitro Fertilization.

Robert Edwards, the man most instrumental in the discovery and development of IVF, was rewarded for his work fighting infertility with the 2010 Nobel Prize in medicine in October.

IVF is a procedure in which human egg cells are fertilized with sperm cells outside of the womb. These cells combine to create human embryos which are then implanted into a woman’s womb with the goal of producing a pregnancy.

Edwards, currently 85-years-old, began experimenting with IVF as early as the 1950’s and had a major breakthrough in 1977 when the scientist became instrumental in producing the first ever IVF pregnancy. On July 25, 1978, Louise Brown was born in Britain, becoming the first every child produced by IVF.

Edwards’s breakthroughs in IVF have made it possible for hundreds of thousands of women throughout the world who previously couldn’t conceive to achieve pregnancy and give birth to healthy children.

The Nobel Prize committee praised Edwards accomplishments in an official citation presented to Edwards with the prestigious award.

“Edwards’ achievements have made it possible to treat infertility, a medical condition afflicting a large portion of humanity, including more than 10 percent of all couples worldwide,” the prize committee in Stockholm said.

“Approximately 4 million individuals have been born thanks to IVF. Today Robert Edward’s vision is a reality and brings joy to infertile people all over the world.”

A relatively new process involving remaining embryos from IVF is Embryo Adoption. During Embryo Adoption, individuals who have frozen embryos remaining from previous IVF cycles agree to donate them to an adopting couple. The adopting family may either be known or anonymous to the donors. The intent behind the process is to transfer the donated embryos into the womb of the adopting mother so that she and her husband may give birth to their adopted child.

To read more Dr. Edwards Nobel Prize visit MSNBC. For more information about Embryo Donation and Adoption please visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Brand New, Must-See Videos on Successful Embryo Adoption Stories

2011-02-07T08:21:00.002-07:00

It may not quite be a Red Carpet Premiere, but today the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center invites you to view three, brand-new videos sharing touching stories from real families who found success through this unique adoption alternative.

Anyone who has considered alternative family building options will relate to some element in these stories. From multiple miscarriages to premature ovarian failure these families gave birth to their children as a result of choosing the extraordinary option of embryo donation and adoption.

So what are you waiting for? Click on the links below to hear these incredible stories - ones that are likely to change the way you think about this exciting adoption option.

Hope Restored by Embryo Adoption

Mike and Stephanie's dreams of starting a family seemed dim after being diagnosed with male infertility factor. A family member told them about embryo adoption and the couple found new hope.

"My doctor was hopeful that I could carry a baby to term and have a successful pregnancy. We didn't pursue IVF because that wasn't an option for us or any other fertility treatments. (Embryo Adoption) just seemed like a perfect fit for us and it ended up being a great avenue for us into starting our family." [Stephanie]

Now after two successful pregnancies through embryo adoption, Mike and Stephanie have two healthy boys and took time to share how it all happened.

Embryo Adoption: The Chosen Option
In 2002, Debby was diagnosed with Premature Ovarian Failure (POF). After traditional adoption and egg donation were ruled out as options for a variety of reasons, Brian and Debby learned about Embryo Adoption.

"It just clicked for us... (Embryo Adoption) was the [adoption] process that fit for us. When we were educated and we found out how many families there were that had remaining embryos in freezers, we thought 'why pursue egg donation and make more embryos when we can have this option and hopefully have a similar success?' We moved forward from there." [Debby]

Now Brian and Debby's family is complete with a son and daughter as a result of choosing embryo adoption.

An Answer to an Exhaustive Infertility Search
This couple was desperate to find answers to why they were having miscarriage after miscarriage. They had already given birth to two children, but couldn't conceive a third. After countless tests and attempts to figure out their fertility problems, they still had no answers.

J.V. and Cathy began to seek possibilities in domestic adoption, and then their counselor suggested embryo adoption. After investigating and having their concerns alleviated they pursued embryo adoption with gusto.

"When we thought about embryo adoption more seriously, it became a way I could still be pregnant. I felt like 'Oh my goodness, I'm going to get to experience pregnancy with these adopted children. What could be better than that?' These are all things I experienced with my genetic children and wanted to experience with my adopted children too. That was a huge part of it for me, I enjoy being pregnant." [Cathy]

Hear the rest of the J.V. and Cathy's inspirational story by watching this video.

Egg donation shortage in UK leaves infertile couples struggling

2011-01-31T08:17:00.001-07:00

Since the early 1980’s, infertile couples around the world have turned to donor eggs in hopes to achieve pregnancy.

But in the United Kingdom, that option is becoming more and more difficult. According to a recent story in the London Evening Standard, over 500 couples in London alone are currently waiting for a donor egg.

The reason for this wait time, experts say, is that fewer women are donating their eggs every year in the UK. And with nearly one in every seven couples struggling with infertility, the shortage is easy to understand.

“Unfortunately, due to a shortage of donors, the average wait for an egg across the London region is approximately two and a half years with the length of wait increasing year on year,” fertility expert Lara Peterkin told the Evening Standard.

Peterkin said that there exists a lack of awareness about egg donation as well as the urgent need for donors.

“Many women simply don't realize that donors are needed or that they themselves could become a donor,” she said.

Because of this shortage, Peterkin’s group at King’s College Hospital in London has started an egg donor registry called “Give Hope, Give Life.” This organization is aimed at increasing awareness of egg donation and encouraging women to sign up as donors.

Meanwhile, in the United States, the egg donation business seems to be going strong. According to a 2006 story in USA Today, around 10,000 children are born each year in the US from egg donation and approximately $38 million is spent compensating donors. '

Embryo Adoption [with an average cost of $12,000.00], a relatively new alternative for infertile couples, is generally much less expensive than egg donation. Couples who are considering egg donation have already determined that they are willing to give birth to a child who may not be genetically related to them – especially if they use donor semen as well.

The cost of donor eggs is high, not only is the woman donating her eggs compensated for her participation, there is the additional medical expense for the egg retrieval and subsequent embryo transfer.

The embryo adoption process includes embryos which have already been created and are waiting in frozen storage for use. Why created more embryos when there are existing embryos available? You can read more about this unique adoption and fertility option at the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center: www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Professor reviews current state of IVF

2011-01-24T09:25:00.000-07:00

In vitro fertilization has enabled thousands of infertile couples to achieve pregnancy since its first in the late 1970’s. But does the reward from this procedure outweigh the risk?

While speaking at the World Congress of Fertility and Sterility in Munich Germany, Professor Karl-Gosta Nygren, chair of the International Committee Monitoring Assisted Reproductive Technologies, explained that there have been increased incidences of birth complications from assisted reproduction procedures, while they are at a low level.

“To pronounce IVF to be safe or not would be an oversimplification.” Nygren said in his address regarding current IVF safety. “Nothing is totally safe. For example, there is, of course, no such thing as a zero risk pregnancy and child birth.”

Nygren continued, explaining the goal of all assisted reproduction should be for IVF children and mothers to be as safe as any other child or mother, and that current studies have shown this is not yet completely achievable. The professor gave examples of very slight increased risks of pre-eclampsia, neonatal death and some birth defects resulting from IVF procedures.

Nygren said that while these risks could come from IVF procedures themselves, they are more likely due to IVF parent’s previous difficulties with reproduction.

“We suspect that in many cases the greater risks are due to the fact that people who come for IVF already have difficulties in reproducing, and so by definition, reproduction is more difficult for them,” he said.

One specific technique Nygren recommends become more common in the IVF world is single embryo transfers. Currently, doctors commonly transfer multiple embryos per cycle into the mother’s womb, which increases the risk of multiple births and potential complications. Single embryo transfers greatly reduce the risk of multiple births.

Nygren concluded his speech in support of the many potential benefits of IVF.

“In summary, if we ask is IVF safe, then the real answer must be ‘safe enough from what we know’. The risks are small, and need to be kept in perspective, especially when set against the potential benefit of having a child. But we can’t be complacent, we need to keep monitoring especially new techniques, and although the risks are low they always need to be explained to prospective parents.”

A relatively new form of assisted reproductive technology is Embryo Adoption, which allows a family to receive remaining embryos from a donor family’s IVF treatment and use them in their own attempt to achieve a pregnancy.

For more information on embryo donation and adoption visit our website at www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Embryo Donation vs. Adoption - What's the difference?

2011-01-17T08:21:00.000-07:00

A decade ago, only one adoption agency in the country offered Embryo Adoption as an adoption alternative. Now there are eight providers and many more agencies are in the process of establishing new programs.

This family-building option offers couples not only the hope of having a child but the chance to experience the joys (and travails) of pregnancy.

The only question is: What should we call it?

Some people refer to this unique option as Embryo Donation. Others refer to it as Embryo Adoption. So what’s the difference?

The words “donation” and “adoption” can be used interchangeably to refer to the same process. However, there are some key differences in the programs that typically refer to the process solely embryo donation or embryo adoption.

There are about 200 fertility clinics in the U.S. that have what they refer to as ‘embryo donation’ programs. These programs may or may not be open to people who are not current patients of the clinic. These programs tend to treat the process as a medical procedure, with very little involvement from the donor couple (if any) as well as less social guidelines for both the donor or recipient families.

Usually, when a couple donates their embryos through an anonymous clinic donation program, the clinic staff will decide who the embryos will be donated to. The donor couple may or may not have a say in the decision and the donated embryos may be distributed among multiple recipients.

‘Embryo adoption’ programs treat the process as just that – an adoption. This means the same protections and guidelines set in place for traditional adoption – home studies, legal contracts, post-adoption support and education – are applied to the embryo recipient/adopter.

This process also protects the donor. It provides information about the family receiving their embryos and allows both couples to have input regarding how much communication there will be between the families following the exchange of the embryos.

One embryo donation program is operated by an organization known as the NEDC (National Embryo Donation Center). This clinic also requires a home study as a part of their program.

A person pursuing embryo donation or adoption should spend time researching the different programs across the country to see what is right for them. Some may determine that having more of a say in the process is important them, others may prefer an anonymous process. The good news is that both are available.

The Embryo Adoption Awareness Center has helpful lists of Embryo Adoption agencies and fertility clinics with Embryo Donation programs on its web site.

Also, you can read more about the difference between “donation” and “adoption” on the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center FAQ’s page.

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Embryo storage and freezing: a brief overview

2011-01-10T08:49:00.002-07:00

According to the Committee Monitoring Assisted Reproductive Technologies (CMART), today there is an estimated 1 million In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) cycles every year around the world.

This makes IVF the most common fertility treatment pursued by infertile couples. But one of the least-talked about aspects of IVF is that many couples will end up with remaining embryos once their family building is complete.

When families have had as many children through the IVF process as they desire, they may have two, five, 10, or more embryos remaining in frozen storage at their clinic or in a cryo-bank. At some point they must determine what they will do (or not do) with these remaining embryos.

Today, there over 500,000 embryos frozen in storage in the U.S.

So, how exactly are embryos frozen? Here’s a quick look at some definitions that will help you understand the process:

Cryopreservation – the freezing of cells or tissue to preserve it for later use.

Time line – embryos are typically frozen at the blastocyst stage, or 5-7 days after their fertilization.

Vitrification – a commonly used, sped-up process of freezing tissues that involves adding a cryoprotectant to the water before freezing.

Cryoprotectant – a type of anti-freeze solution that helps to prevent ice crystals from forming in the water, which can be dangerous to frozen cells and tissue.

Freezing process – controlled freezing techniques slowly cool the embryos in the cryprotectant fluid. The fluid temperature gets as low as -196 degrees Celsius.

Straws – Long, plastic vials containing the embryos that are sealed prior to freezing. Usually there are no more than 1 to 3 embryos in each straw.

Dewars – Large, tank-like containers of liquid nitrogen which the straws are placed in.

To date, there has been no significant research showing an “expiration date” for frozen embryos. In fact, recently in the U.S. a healthy child was born from an embryo frozen for 20 years!

For more information about Embryo Donation, Adoption and storage, visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Embryo Adoption Questions Answered - What is an Embryo Adoption Home Study?

2011-01-03T08:30:00.000-07:00

Embryo Adoption Questions Answered - What does an Embryo Adoption cost?

2010-12-20T08:33:00.000-07:00

This week’s topic: Cost of Embryo Adoption

Q: Is Embryo Adoption expensive?

A: Embryo adoption is a low cost adoption alternative when compared to domestic and international adoption, repeated IVF cycles and the cost of donor eggs. The embryo donor does not receive payment for their embryos. The most exciting aspect of embryo adoption is that you have the opportunity to give birth to your adopted child. The adoption of foster-care children is generally the least expensive for of adoption.

Q: What costs are involved with embryo adoption?

A: The cost of the average Embryo Adoption varies greatly depending on the agency/program/clinic involved. Typically a family can expect to pay between $10,000-$16,000 in fees. This includes the agency fee ($2,500-$10,000), a home study/family assessment ($1,000-$5,000) and a Clinic Frozen Embryo Transfer ($2,500-$5,000).

Q: Does the program fee include medical expenses?

A: Again, this depends on the program you are working with. If medical expenses are included in the fee, generally you will need to work with a specified fertility clinic.

If medical expenses are not included, adopting parents are able to choose their fertility clinic and doctor, and need to pay the clinic to thaw and transfer the embryos as well as any other associated medical costs connected with the transfer.

Q: Does the adopting family help with any of the fees owed by the donating parent?

A: Typically, adopting families do not pick up any costs that accrued prior to having been matched with a donating family. Adopting families do often reimburse donating families for any expenses incurred during or after they are matched. This includes storage and shipping fees, legal costs, and any fees associated with medical or psychological screening. These may be included in the overall program fee if done through an agency.

Visit about Embryo Donation and Adoption for more information.

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Embryo Adoption Questions Answered - Donor Parents

2010-12-13T08:30:00.004-07:00

This week’s topic: Embryo Donation

Q: What is Embryo Donation?

A: Through the use of in vitro fertilization (IVF), thousands of couples have been able to have children. After they have completed their family building through IVF many of these couples find themselves with remaining embryos in frozen storage. Now they must determine the destiny of remaining embryos – often a difficult decision.

One option available to couples with remaining embryos is to donate them to another couple experiencing infertility. Embryo Donation is a positive experience for the donors, adopters and embryos. For the donating couple it is a life affirming way to resolve a challenging dilemma. For the adopting family it can be a long awaited opportunity to experience pregnancy, childbirth and parenting. For the embryos it is the chance to grow, be born and live in a loving family.

Q: If we used an anonymous egg or sperm donor when we created our embryos, can we still place them for adoption?

A: If the contract you signed with the donor does not specify that eggs or sperm are for your personal reproductive use only, you can place the embryos with another family. FDA rules and regulations need to be followed. In addition, you will also need to provide any information you have about the donor.

Q: Does the age of the embryos (date frozen) affect our ability to place them for adoption?

A: No, there have been no definitive studies proving how long embryos can stay frozen and remain viable. There have been successful pregnancies with embryos that have been frozen for up to 20 years.

Q: Are there any benefits of donating embryos through an adoption agency?

A: ‘Embryo adoption’ programs treat the process as just that – an adoption. This means the same protections and guidelines set in place for traditional adoption – home studies, legal contracts, post-adoption support and education – are applied to the embryo recipient/adopter. This process protects the donor. It provides information about the family receiving their embryos and allows both couples to have input regarding how much communication there will be between the families following the exchange of the embryos.

To learn more about Embryo Donation and Adoption please visit www.EmbryoAdoption.org.

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Embryo Adoption Questions Answered - Adoptive Parents

2010-12-06T09:06:00.000-07:00

This week’s topic: Potential Adoptive Families

Q: Why would adopting parents choose embryo adoption instead of traditional adoption of a new born?

A: The most obvious difference between an embryo adoption and a traditional adoption is the pregnancy experience. Mothers of adopted embryos are able to experience the joys (and burdens!) of pregnancy and labor. They also have the peace of mind of knowing their children received the appropriate parental care and were not exposed to alcohol or drugs during pregnancy.

Q: What are the basic requirements for a family hoping to adopt embryos?

A: The adopting mother must be able to carry a child to term. Her doctor will be asked to provide a letter stating that there are no contraindications to pregnancy. Additional eligibility requirements may be indicated by the placing family. The adopting family must also have completed an adoptive home study. This home study is the same study used to evaluate and educate adopting parents in traditional domestic adoptions.

Q: What other stipulations may affect a family’s ability to adopt embryos?

A: Each adoption agency has various eligibility requirements for adopting parents. These may include –
• An age limit for the adopting mother
• Eligibility of couples who do not have an infertility diagnosis
• Whether adoptive couples can use a Surrogate mother to carry their adopted Embryos
• Out-of-state/country embryo adoptions
• Eligibility of single women

Q: What is the best way to get started?

A: Continue to learn more about Embryo Adoption by visiting the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center website where you will find much more information and hear from other people who have adopted embryos. You will also find testimonial videos, articles and even a finding help section with lists of clinics and agencies throughout the US.

To see answers to other common questions about Embryo Donation and Adoption, visit our FAQ page. Next week, find out answers to some common questions about Embryo Donation.

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Have scientists found the male infertility gene?

2010-11-29T08:35:00.000-07:00

Embryo Donors and Adopters Share Their Heartwarming Story (Part 3)

2010-11-22T09:05:00.000-07:00

Embryo donors and adopters share their heartwarming story (Part 2)

2010-11-15T09:35:00.002-07:00

(The following was written by an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter.)

Edited by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

In Part 1, we heard from a couple donating their embryos. Now, in Part 2 we learn the perspective of the adoptive family:

Like many couples, during our courtship and early marriage we talked often of the day we would be parents.You can imagine our dismay after a year passed without any success. This turned into a seven-year journey of medical interventions.

Although there were glimmers of hope during this time, each attempt resulted in crushing disappointment. I would be anything but truthful if I didn’t tell you that this was a devastating experience for us. There were many times that we tried to be gracious as people asked us why we didn’t have or want any children. Infertility can be a misunderstood and lonely experience.

While on the Internet one day, I came across embryo adoption. I was excited to find that there might be an opportunity for us to not only adopt, but also carry the child.

The Matching Process~ Two needs, one love

After discussing embryo adoption with our doctor, we were ready and eager to begin. Although we considered other agencies, we were impressed with the dignity that Nightlight Christian Adoptions brought to the process and the emphasis that they placed on the value of these little lives. At the end of 2006, I contacted them and began our paperwork. Although we were somewhat overwhelmed by all the things that were required of us, we kept focused.

In early 2007, we were so surprised and humbled that we had been selected by a couple to adopt their five embryos. We read through their profile and immediately felt a connection to them. After praying about the decision, we contacted Nightlight and let them know that we wanted to proceed. Knowing how much we wanted children, we are in awe of Barbara and Ken and their incredible gift to us!

Finding Out We Are Pregnant

Having gone through the embryo transfer in October 2007, we eagerly awaited to find out the results. I didn’t sleep well the night before my doctor’s appointment on November 12th. And at 5:00 that morning, I couldn’t wait any longer. I took a pregnancy test and to my amazement it came up positive for pregnancy.

I dissolved into tears and woke Eric up to tell him we were expecting. This is one of the sweetest moments we have ever had in our marriage. We just couldn’t believe, after all these years, we were going to be parents. This was the answer to not only years of individual, but collective prayers.

Pregnancy and The Birth of Kaitlyn

My pregnancy was a wonderful experience, a truly happy time for us. On July 8th our beautiful baby daughter came into this world. The best day of our lives! As Eric says, “We’re smitten!” Although we thought we understood, we now realize that the emotions of love and protection that you feel when you hold your baby are truly overwhelming. There are still times we find ourselves in tears, simply in awe of Kaitlyn’s presence in our lives. She is our miracle!

Before you were conceived I wanted you.

Before you were born I loved you.

Before you were even an hour old

I would die for you.

This is the Miracle of LOVE.

Embryo donors and adopters share their story (Part 1)

2010-11-08T08:53:00.001-07:00

Our Precious Gifts (Part 2)

2010-11-01T08:51:00.000-06:00

(The following was written by an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter.)

by Chad & Tanya

In part one of Chad and Tayna's story, we learned of the couples choice to begin the process of Embryo Adoption. Read the conclusion of their amazing story below.

We were matched with a third genetic family and adopted 18 embryos, and through some circumstances and several people, including the genetic father, we felt we should switch doctors. This was a hard decision to make. In May 2005, we had a transfer with our new doctor, but again our pregnancy test was negative. Just prior to our sixth transfer in July 2005, I felt at peace, knowing that we were doing what we were called to do. And two weeks later, we were thrilled to learn that we were pregnant! But the greatest joy of our lives turned into the deepest heartache as we lost the baby at 8 weeks.

We had our next transfer in February 2006 with our remaining embryos, and we had decided that this would be our last transfer if it was not successful. Instead, though, we were thrilled to learn that we were pregnant, and this time we were expecting twins! But once again, joy was accompanied by heartache when we had an ultrasound at 16 weeks and learned that one of the twins had died at the end of our first trimester. Thankfully, we were blessed us with Ethan Richard, who was born on October 19, 2006!

When Ethan turned a year old, we began thinking about how to expand our family. After our first experience, we had no idea what the path would look like. We were matched with a genetic family and adopted eight embryos. We had our transfer last October, and just prior to Ethan’s second birthday, we found out that we were pregnant! We suspected that we were once again expecting twins, but after a complication and an emergency visit to the doctor, we learned that we had been expecting twins but again had lost one of the babies. Thankfully, though, we were blessed with Tyler Matthew on June 21, 2009.

I find significance in the fact that he was our gift on Father’s Day, as we had previously had so many difficult Mother’s and Father’s Days, as is true for so many infertile couples.

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Our Precious Gifts (Part 1)

2010-10-25T08:51:00.001-06:00

(The following was written by an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter.)
by Chad & Tanya

Edited by Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

Father’s Day was extra special for us last year, as our second son, Tyler Matthew, was born. He was born on his actual due date, June 21, at 3:30 PM. In fact, when I looked back at our calendar from last year, I realized that our frozen embryo transfer the previous fall had been at 3:30 PM. As our doctor said, he wanted to be punctual! It was six years ago on June 21 that our close friends gave birth to their second child, and at the time, I wondered if we were ever going to have a child.

Four years prior to that, we learned that it is medically impossible for us to conceive a child. Before seeing our fertility doctor, we had both separately learned about the Snowflakes (Embryo Adoption) program. After receiving our diagnosis, we quickly realized that we were called to adopt embryos. But like many adoptions, our journey was filled with ups and downs. We were matched with our first genetic family at the end of 2002 and adopted five embryos. Our first transfer was unsuccessful and the next scheduled transfer did not actually happen because the remaining two embryos turned out to be just one embryo, which did not survive the thaw. We were heartbroken by the disappointments, but we were still confident of our calling.

Soon after holding my friend’s baby that June afternoon in 2004, we had our third frozen embryo transfer. We had been matched with a second genetic family and adopted seven embryos, and we had already had an unsuccessful transfer from that match. As we realized that our pregnancy test would fall on our 8th wedding anniversary, I was confident that we would have the best news of our life on that day. But once again, we were devastated to receive a negative pregnancy result.

Stay tuned next week to see the amazing conclusion to Chad and Tanya’s incredible journey with Embryo Adoption.

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Embryo Adoption: Questions answered by an adoptive mother (Part 2)

2010-10-18T11:46:00.000-06:00

(The following is part 2 of an interview with an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter. For part 1 of the interview, click here.)

Edited by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

Q: If and/or when doubts or fears came throughout the process, (for both of you) how did you calm them down?

ANN: We certainly had scares during the pregnancy. I had bleeding early on. We had transferred 3 embryos in order to give them all a chance at life. It is our belief that 2 implanted and then we lost one, and hence, the bleeding. We cried and we pestered the doctors a lot! They were wonderful, and no doubt, placed in our path to help us through it all.
I am also blessed to have my very best friend to be my husband as well. We talked about all of our fears openly. Talking about fears can dispel them quite effectively. Then you have to let go.

Q: What were the most frustrating times of this process?

ANN: The most difficult times for both of us probably had to do with taking all of the medications to prepare the uterus for the embryo transfers. Once pregnant, you continue to take them for several months. They are not pleasant! They are high doses of hormones, which taken for an extended period of time, can make you think you are going to lose it! You can tell you are not yourself, but you cannot change it. It's PMS to the max! The other thing that was very difficult for us was when the first 2 embryos, from another family, did not survive the thawing process. It was very painful. We grieved, not only for ourselves, but for the other family as well. We had to accept this, but it was not easy.

Q: What are your feelings about Reese’s arrival? How do you share these with friends or family? How do they support you?

ANN: We are so excited for Reese to arrive! We love him soooooo much already and now just want him to be well and happy. I do have some sadness over the ending of the pregnancy. For nine months I have carried him and taken care of him. Every time he moves, I am filled with joy. I will never feel as though he is not mine or ours. He is a part of me, and therefore, a part of Dave. This is the amazing blessing of this type of adoption. It's simply a miracle! We are also apprehensive, just hoping to be good parents for him. But I understand this is rather normal for new parents. We have read a lot and plan to continue to learn everything we can to be the most effective, loving parents we can be.

We stay current with friends and family via phone, email, or one on one interaction. Everyone at our jobs stays on top of things. I am fortunate to work with a couple of people who will be more like Reese's aunts than friends. They have even given us a baby shower (or two). They are very supportive and attentive. One of these people is also having the same "sympathy" symptoms I have had. We have also had a baby shower thrown by two of my nieces.

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Embryo Adoption: Questions answered by an adoptive mother

2010-10-11T09:33:00.000-06:00

(The following is an interview of an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter.)

Edited by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

Q: What were your thoughts when you heard about Embryo Adoption?

ANN: To accurately answer, I have to first say that our first infertility specialist was less than satisfactory and not very kind. He never offered embryo adoption to us and told us, basically, to give up on having children.

Amazingly, that same week, three different people told us about Dr. Stewart who is our current specialist. We did see him soon after and at our first meeting, he introduced us to embryo adoption. I remember him handing us the brochure, and as soon as I looked at it, I knew what we were supposed to do. It was automatic for me.

Q: What were your fears or anxieties about going through such a program?

ANN: My fears and anxieties were that it just wouldn't work. But that's where that big voice had to be trusted! I think with any adoption, you also fear that the genetic parents will want the baby back.

Q: When you received the profile of your donor, how did you know this was the right match?

ANN: We thought about this. Of course, what was there not to love about Lise and Mark (the embryo donors) and their beautiful family? I think once you read about the other person's story, you cannot help but become involved in some way.

Eventually, it's as though it's one big extended family of sorts. And everyone just wants the best possible outcome. Both sides have immense gains to be had. Ultimately, we just waited for peace in our decision to pursue this with Lise and Mark.

Q: When Lise & Mark chose you and Dave to adopt these embryos, how did you feel?

ANN: Humbled. We both cried and felt very, very humble. Gratitude doesn't even begin to describe our feelings towards Lise and Mark.

Read more of this interview in the next Embryo Adoption Awareness Center blog post.

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A New Beginning - Through Embryo Adoption (Part 2)

2010-10-04T09:10:00.000-06:00

A New Beginning – Through Embryo Adoption

2010-09-27T08:33:00.001-06:00

(The following was written by an embryo adoptive parent and was published in a Nightlight Christian Adoptions newsletter.)

By Dara
Edited by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center

Part 1

She is the end (or rather a new beginning) to our embryo adoption story. It began one day when I was reading on the Internet about international adoption and learned about the Snowflakes (Embryo Adoption and Donation) Program.

My husband, Kevin, and I agreed it was a wonderful program but never thought it would be in our future. Some months later, in an ethics class, the doctor who was teaching discussed embryos. We saw pictures of embryos just 3-6 days old, and my heart was pulled to take a stand and rescue these babies-to-be.

On the way to our oldest son’s college graduation, I was reading a newsletter. The newsletter provides resources for families who are home schooling kids with special needs or disabilities, and also provides information on children with special needs who are waiting for placement with adoptive families.

I am always encouraged to see the work they are doing and be challenged in my home schooling practices as I listen to the struggles many moms face and overcome daily. That particular newsletter had an article about a set of embryos looking for a family!

Due to the medical history, there was a possibility that these embryos might grow into babies with an illness incompatible with life. The agency was seeking a special family who knew of this possibility but was still willing to give these lives their chance. I was overwhelmed with the idea that we should take them.

I shared my thoughts with Kevin. He wondered about the process, the safety, and details but he felt if it worked out it was meant to be.

Story to be continued in the next EAAC Blog post...

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Doctors say individuality the key to fertility success

2010-09-20T11:18:00.000-06:00

In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) is one of the most common forms of Assisted Reproductive Technology in the United States. Each year, thousands of couples pursue this option in attempt to achieve a pregnancy.

But as more and more couples utilize IVF, doctors continue to mold the treatment in order to make it more successful – and safer.

Today’s experts recommend that couples pursuing IVF use an individually-designed approach, instead of simply taking the “common” treatment.

Dr David Robertson, director of IVF at Tawam Hospital in Abu Dhabi, recently told AMEinfo.com that individualizing IVF treatment allows a couple to have the greatest chance of success in achieving pregnancy.

“The treatment of infertility, especially when using IVF, can be a difficult process,” said Robertson. “It is a process that can be conducted in many different ways, depending on the philosophy of the doctors responsible for determining the best approach."

“The best approach is one that maximizes the chances of conception success in each individual, by taking into account the fact that each woman is different and should be treated that way."

But what exactly does treating each woman “differently” mean? For some, it means reducing the levels of hormones used to encourage a pregnancy. This may result in less eggs being created, but allows for more viable eggs as well as reducing the chance of complications due to overuse of hormones.

Some women may require more or less time in between multiple transfers. Still, others may require different medical treatment and precautions during their IVF process.

Understanding that every woman – and every couple – is different and comes from a different medical background is important as well. Because of this, Dr. Robertson says every couple should have access to qualified fertility specialists as well as counselors, who can guide them through the process.

The EAAC would like to point out that another option for infertile couples to consider is Embryo Donation and Adoption, which allows a couple to receive remaining embryos from another couple’s IVF treatment and use them in their own attempt to achieve pregnancy.

For more information on Embryo Donation and Adoption, visit the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

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10 things you may not know about Embryo Donation and Adoption

2010-09-13T08:35:00.000-06:00

Can scientists now predict when women will reach menopause?

2010-09-07T08:13:00.000-06:00

To many women who still hope to have children of their own, menopause can come suddenly and without warning, ending the chance at any further family building.

But doctors in Iran believe they may have developed a way to determine when a woman will reach menopause with accuracy of within four months on average, according to a story in The Guardian.

Dr Fahimeh Ramezani Tehrani recently told a meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology that he and his staff have developed a simple blood test they believe can predict when menopause will arrive with impressive precision.

"The results from our study could enable us to make a more realistic assessment of women's reproductive status many years before they reach menopause," Tehrani told the Guardian.

The test allows doctors to determine the level of anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH), which develops ovarian follicles in which the eggs develop in a woman’s body.

Blood samples from over 250 women between the ages of 20 and 49 were taken on three different occasions over a three year period. Information on the women’s backgrounds, including reproductive history, was also recorded by the scientists.

Based on the level of AMH in the woman’s body, combined with this other information, the researchers could then predict how soon menopause would arrive. The higher the level of AMH, the later menopause would occur.

“We believe that our estimates of ages at menopause based on AMH levels are of sufficient validity to guide medical practitioners in their day to day practice so that they can help women with their family planning,” said Tehrani.

However, some in the medical profession are doubtful that this simple test can consistently be accurate in predicting menopause, including Professor Michael Chapman, an infertility specialist at IVF Australia.

“I'm a little skeptical given that it is a statistical model rather than working on real patients and following them through to menopause,” Chapman told Australia’s ABC news. “Certainly our data from IVF Australia would suggest that very low levels are very negative in relation to the onset of menopause in the next year or two.”

Visit www.embryoadoption.org today to learn more about the infertility and adoption alternative of embryo donation and adoption.

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Infertility tourism – the future of fertility treatment?

2010-08-30T09:28:00.000-06:00

Is cell phone use really linked to infertility in men?

2010-08-23T08:41:00.000-06:00

Report confirms adoption and ART have much in common

2010-08-16T08:27:00.000-06:00

According to a 2009 report by the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute there are clear benefits to treating Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) procedures with the same practices of traditional adoption and the two processes are more similar than many previously believed. ART refers to the practice of using artificial methods to achieve pregnancy including the use of donor eggs and sperm as well as donor embryos which the report explains has few differences than adoption.

The report, entitled OLD LESSONS FOR A NEW WORLD: Applying Adoption Research and Experience to Assisted Reproductive Technology, states that the similarity between ART pregnancy and adoptions is that both create families where children are not genetically related to one or both parents. The report proceeds to recommend that families be more open in educating children produced by ART about their history and origins.

Institute researchers state that withholding information about how ART children came to be can possibly cause unnecessary problems in the future.

According to the report, children born of ART “should be able to learn the circumstances of their births, as well as their biological and medical backgrounds. To ensure that this happens, the U.S. should join Great Britain and other countries in mandating that donor-conceived offspring be given access to this information at age 18, and practice models should be implemented for ART practitioners to provide for such disclosure.”

Researchers even recommend that the U.S Government has a role to play in the process of helping ART adoptees discover their genetic pasts.

“The U.S. also should establish a national database to collect, maintain, and facilitate access to information enabling gamete providers to routinely update the medical, historical, and other information they supplied at the time of donation.” (Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute)

To read the full report click here.

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Five things you didn't know about infertility

2010-08-09T09:07:00.000-06:00

One in seven couples in the United States will struggle with infertility, according to the American Fertility Association. While more and more treatments are becoming available, many misconceptions still exist about infertility.

Did you know the following five facts about infertility?

#5: Infertility is just as likely to be caused by problems with the man as with the woman. In fact, about one third of infertility cases are caused by complications with the woman and one third are caused by complications with the man.

The remaining third are caused by factors that are unknown or are caused by a combination of issues between the man and the woman.

#4: Alcohol use and smoking cigarettes can increase risk of infertility. While the causes of infertility can be medical, lifestyle choices certainly can contribute to a couples’ ability to achieve pregnancy.

Aside from heavy alcohol use and cigarette smoking, other things that can increase the risk of infertility include age, drug use, certain medicines, poor diet and stress.

#3: Doctors recommend couples try to achieve pregnancy naturally at least one year before pursuing fertility alternatives. However, women over the age of 35 should talk to their doctor about infertility after six months of unsuccessful attempts at conceiving.

The FDA recommends that all women talk to their doctor before trying to achieve a pregnancy.

#2: Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) treatments (i.e. IVF, embryo adoption) are successful 39 percent of the time, on average, for women under the age of 35. However, as a woman ages, her chances at success using ART greatly decrease.

For a woman between 35 and 37, the chances of success through ART are 30 percent. For women ages 37-40, the success rate goes down to 21 percent. And for women ages 41-42, the chances of ART working is only 11 percent.

#1: Transfers of adopted/donated embryos have a higher success rate than transfers of a couple’s own embryos. According to a 2007 study by Fertility and Sterility, donated embryos resulted in a successful pregnancy 35% of the time, while transfers using a couple’s own embryos (from IVF) resulted in pregnancy 32% of the time.

While it is not entirely clear why this is so, it does show that a couple pursuing an Embryo Donation/Adoption has, at least, the same chance at success as a couple pursuing IVF using their own embryos.

Most of these facts were taken from the Department of Health and Human Services web site, www.womenshealth.gov. For more information on Embryo Adoption, visit www.embryoadoption.org.

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Embryo Adoption a hit around the world

2010-08-02T08:09:00.001-06:00

When the Snowflakes Embryo Adoption program was begun in California in 1997, it was the first program of its kind not only in the United States, but in the world.

Today, there are at least seven other Embryo Adoption programs in the United States, with over 200 fertility clinic Embryo Donation programs operating as well.

And like any good idea, it hasn’t taken long for Embryo Adoption to begin spreading well outside of the U.S. This unique fertility option has found roots in the Middle East, Asia and Europe.

For example, the Malpani Infertility Clinic in Colaba, India has become a major force in Embryo Adoption, with over 1,000 embryos currently frozen in storage at their facility.

According to a recent story in the Hindustan Times, the Malpani Clinic has at least four couples adopt embryos each and every month – up from around one per month several years ago.

In Europe, embryo donation programs have sprouted up in countries including the United Kingdom, where there are over 116,000 embryos frozen in storage, according to The Guardian.

The Wessex Fertility Centre in Southampton, for example, advertises embryo donation as one of its main treatment options to its infertility patients.

This relatively new option has begun catching on in Canada, too, where a new program was recently started by Beginnings Counseling and Adoption Services and in Ontario – the first embryo donation service in Canada.

Other international embryo donation/adoption programs include the Singapore Urology and Fertility Centre, the Bangkok Hospital & Medical Center and the Jindal Heart Institute and Infertility Centre in India.

With the overwhelming number of couples worldwide struggling with infertility, embryo donation and adoption is likely to continue growing as an option in the U.S. and globally.

For more information on this option, and to see a list of Embryo Adoption programs in the U.S., visit www.embryoadoption.org.

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Snowflakes delivers children via Embryo Adoption (part 2)

2010-07-26T08:38:00.001-06:00

(The following is part 2 of a two-week story. To read part 1, click here.)

In mid-2007, Chris and Sabrina Garcia were told by their doctors that they would not be able to conceive. As the couple began researching their fertility treatment options, they came across an alternative known as Embryo Adoption.

The program they first contacted was Snowflakes Embryo Adoption. Operated by Nightlight Christian Adoptions in Southern California, Snowflakes was the first Embryo Adoption program in the world.

Snowflakes works to match an adopting family with a donor couple, assists with all necessary legal work, and arranges the transportation of the embryos directly to the adopting couples’ clinic. For the Garcias, it seemed like the perfect fit.

“Everyone at Snowflakes was just fantastic,” said Sabrina. “Like any adoption, there are going to be curves and bumps – nothing is going to be perfectly easy. But they did a great job of putting us at ease throughout the process.”

Today, there are at least eight Embryo Adoption agencies in the United States as well as over 200 fertility clinic embryo donation programs. Though only a fraction are currently available for adoption, there are an estimated 500,000 embryos in frozen storage in the U.S. alone, according to a 2009 survey of clinics and cryo-banks by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

These embryos offer hope for couples like the Garcias who feel hopeless in the face of infertility. While Embryo Adoption is not for everyone, it does offer another alternative for the couple who deeply desires the experience of pregnancy.

In May of 2009, the Garcias’ journey came to completion as their Embryo Adoption resulted in the birth of their baby girl, Emma Grace.

“This is exactly what I was waiting for,” Sabrina said. “I always prayed and prayed that I could have a child. God answered those prayers - just not in the way I expected him to.”

“For a woman out there who has always dreamed of having an opportunity to experience pregnancy, this is it. Embryo Adoption is it.”

For more information visit www.snowflakes.org and www.embryoadoption.org.

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Snowflakes delivers children through Embryo Adoption

2010-07-19T08:12:00.001-06:00

In the summer of 2007, Sabrina and Chris Garcia received some heartbreaking news: they were not able to achieve a pregnancy.

Like the thousands of couples in the United States who struggle with infertility, this Colorado couple began researching all of their adoption options.

They looked into the traditional alternatives: domestic adoption, foster adoption, as well as international adoption. But in the end, the couple decided to go in a very different (and life-changing) direction – Embryo Adoption.

Embryo Adoption is the process in which couples who have remaining embryos from In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) are able to donate those embryos to another infertile couple to use in their own attempt to achieve pregnancy.

The result - for hundreds of couples like the Garcias - has been not only the joy of pregnancy, but also the unique chance to give birth to their “adopted” child.

“When we found out we couldn’t get pregnant, my mother gave me a book on adoption from Focus on the Family and it mentioned this idea of Embryo Adoption,” said Sabrina. “I was wondering, ‘How have I never heard of this before?’ When I found out I could give birth to a child through Embryo Adoption, it was absolutely mind-blowing. I fell to my knees. It was beyond an answer to prayer.”

After researching multiple Embryo Adoption programs online, the couple found the Snowflakes Embryo Adoption program in Southern California.

Operated by Nightlight Christian Adoptions, Snowflakes was the first Embryo Adoption program in the world, established in 1997. To date, over 220 children have been born through the Snowflakes program nationwide.

Find out if the Bonnemas were one of the families who experienced pregnancy in next week's blog...

Visit www.embryoadoption.org for more information.

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Embryo Adoption takes off in India

2010-07-12T16:03:00.001-06:00

If you have been following this blog, you know that Embryo Donation and Adoption is becoming a more viable alternative for family building in the United States. It eliminates the need for costly IVF treatments or the even more costly alternative of procuring donor eggs.

Fertility clinics and embryo adoption agencies report to the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center that there have been over 3,000 children born to date through this unique adoption and fertility alternative.

But Embryo Donation and Adoption is catching on in other countries around the world, too. This is especially true in India, where several fertility clinics now specialize in the procedure.

One of those clinics is the Malpani Fertility Clinic, headed by Dr. Anjali Malpani. According to a recent story in The Times of India, Malpani now averages about three to four Embryo Adoptions each month, with many of her patients travelling from abroad, including the United States.

Patricia Bohanan, a teacher from Colorado, is one of the patients who travelled to India to have the procedure done at the Malpani Clinic.

Bohanan said she came across the clinic online and was impressed by the low cost of an Embryo Adoption procedure: roughly $5,000 for the entire medical process.

So Bohanan travelled to India to receive the transfer of an embryo created using an Indian sperm donor and egg donor. At the Malpani Clinic, the Embryo Adoption process is entirely anonymous and the recipient couple will not have any contact with the donating couple.

In the U.S., anonymous programs exist in many of the 200+ fertility clinic embryo donation programs nationwide.

However, there are also several agencies using the adoption model in the United States, including Snowflakes and NEDC, which allow for both anonymous and open Embryo Adoptions. These agencies also offer the protections and the safeguards of a traditional adoption process.

With over 500,000 embryos frozen in storage in the United States alone, it is no surprise that Embryo Donation and Adoption is such a fast-growing option for infertile couples – in the U.S. and around the world.

To read more about the Malpani Clinic, click here. To see a list of Embryo Adoption agencies in the U.S., follow this link.

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Facing declining population, Singapore encourages more babies

2010-07-05T08:20:00.002-06:00

Much has been made in recent years about the strict control of family size in Asian countries like China, where most married couples are only allowed to have one child.

But in the Asian country of Singapore, government officials find themselves facing the exact opposite dilemma.

Singapore, a small island city-state in Southeast Asia, has seen a steady decrease in the number of births in recent years, according to a recent story in Asia One News. In 2009, just 39,654 children were born in Singapore, 170 fewer than in 2008.

More significantly, the fertility rate (the average number of children born to a woman during her lifetime) has dropped from 1.6 in 2000 to 1.28 in 2008. The fertility rate needed for a population to replace itself is 2.1.

This trend has the government in Singapore scrambling to encourage families to have more children. Among the baby-boosting measures include cash incentives, increased child-care leave, and a longer maternity leave of four months, up from the prior two-month period.

So far, however, these measures have not succeeded in reversing the trend of decreased fertility and an aging population, which government officials see as leading to decreased economic productivity.

But according to Tan Ern Ser, an Associate Professor at the National University of Singapore, increased productivity could actually help keep the fertility rate low.

"Ironically, the people who could afford to have children see having children as involving high opportunity costs; while many who can ill-afford to have children see them as a good investment for the future,” he said.

Singapore is not alone in the battle against decreasing population. Several other Asian countries are facing similar problems, including South Korea, whose government health ministry office recently shut its lights at 7 p.m. to encourage employees to go home and make more babies.

Read the full story here.

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Michigan couple sees success through Embryo Adoption (Part 2)

2010-06-28T08:31:00.002-06:00

Michigan couple Kari and Chad Bonnema had been trying for years to achieve a pregnancy. Their journey brought them to the unique option of Embryo Donation and Adoption (read more about their story in last week's blog).

Working through a local fertility clinic, the Bonnemas received donated embryos on two separate occasions. But in both instances, the embryo transfers did not result in pregnancy.

Just a month after the second unsuccessful transfer, however, the Bonnemas received three more donated embryos. Deciding to try one final time, the couple had their doctor transfer all three embryos into Kari.

“It was a little nerve-racking at times, especially knowing that if you put in three embryos you have to be ready for the possibility of triplets,” said Chad.

But this time all of the Bonnemas’ patience paid off as two of the embryos resulted in pregnancy. In October of 2009, Chad and Kari gave birth to a twin baby boy and girl.

“We hadn’t known anyone who had done this before,” said Kari. “It was really an eye-opener for people. Not many people had heard of it - we hadn’t even heard of it. But now we’ll tell anybody about it. We love to share the idea with people and let them know that it works.”

Despite the long and sometimes challenging process, Kari said she and her husband are now strong proponents of Embryo Donation and Adoption.

“I would tell people to give it a try,” she said. “Yeah, it took us three times, but how will you know if you don’t even try? When I look back, there was always a part of me that wanted to be pregnant. Plus, these embryos wouldn’t have had a chance to live otherwise.”

Chad said that he would encourage men to consider the idea of Embryo Adoption – even if it sounds a bit foreign at first.

“I strongly recommend this process,” he said. “There is nothing like the beauty of seeing your wife go through pregnancy.”

Since nearly one in every seven couples struggles with some type of fertility issue, Embryo Adoption is likely to only keep growing more and more popular in the future.

For all of these couples, as the Bonnemas proved, this unique option offers another chance at pregnancy.

“For the couple out there that has fertility problems and feels like there is no hope – this is definitely hope,” he said. “We’ve been there before with the difficulties and struggles. This was just what we needed to have a family.”

Michigan couple sees success through Embryo Adoption (Part 1)

2010-06-21T08:34:00.001-06:00

Embryo Donation and Adoption has touched the lives of infertile couples everywhere.

In fact, today there are eight at least Embryo Adoption programs, along with over 200 fertility clinics with donation programs in the United States alone.

But there is one common thread between all of the families who have pursued this option: each owns a unique and inspiring story.

Chad and Kari Bonnema, from Grand Haven, Michigan, are certainly no exception. The couple’s story is one of challenge, perseverance, and ultimate success.

The Bonnemas had been struggling with infertility for some time when they began looking into domestic adoption. They had already adopted one child through a local agency and were moving forward on adopting a second child when they heard about Embryo Adoption through a radio program which deals with family issues.

“It sounded like such a great option,” said Kari. “But we had already started the process of our second adoption, so we thought, ‘Well, maybe that’s an option for our third child.’”

Throughout the process of domestic adoption, Kari felt the tug on her heartstrings of a strong desire: she wanted to experience the joys of pregnancy.

“We had a friend who was pregnant at the time and we kind of saw her going through that whole process,” Kari said. “And I think my husband saw that and said, ‘I really want that for you.’”

So the Bonnemas began to research more about Embryo Donation and Adoption. The Bonnemas elected to work through a clinic donation program at The Fertility Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

In the fall of 2005, the Bonnemas received two donated embryos. But this first attempt at achieving a pregnancy was unsuccessful.

“We kind of started to feel like maybe this is going to be our family – two kids and that’s it,” said Chad. “And that would have been fine.”

But once again, there was a feeling that they should give it another chance.

“One of the reasons we kept trying was that we wanted to give Kari that chance to experience pregnancy,” said Chad. “That life experience is a big deal.”

So, three years later, the Bonnemas elected to try again, once more receiving two donated embryos in December of 2008. Once again neither embryo took, and a pregnancy never occurred.

But the Bonnemas weren't about to give up yet in their quest to achieve a pregnancy. Read about how the couple finally found success with embryo donation and adoption in next week's blog...

Rock-a-bye...embryo?

2010-06-14T10:59:00.004-06:00

Are remaining frozen human embryos destined for destruction?

2010-06-07T08:19:00.000-06:00

Breakthrough in infertility treatment using adult stem cells

2010-05-25T11:25:00.000-06:00

All women are born with a certain number of eggs in their body. This means that, at some point, every woman runs out of eggs or her eggs become less viable and she is no longer capable of conceiving a child.

The American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) has estimated the following sterility rates among women by age group:

Age in Years = Risk of Childlessness (%)
20-24 = 5.7%
25-29 = 9.3%
30-34 = 15.5%
35-39 = 29.6%
40-44 = 63.6%

But these facts may be about to change.

Four years ago, U.S. scientists concluded research showing that stem cells can be derived from an adult woman's ovaries and used for "growing" into mature egg cells.

Now, Chinese researchers have reported in an article in Nature Cell Biology that these cells, when transplanted into the ovaries of laboratory animals, can develop into healthy eggs capable of being fertilized. They hope that this type of technology can be used successfully in women, as well.

If so, perhaps the one in ten women who struggle with infertility may have a new way of developing healthy eggs. The treatment could also be used in women who have damaged eggs.

This research was led by Chinese scientist Dr. Ji Wu, who stated that these adult stem cells "can be used to extend female reproductive lifespan."

"The generation of new oocytes (eggs) could postpone normal or premature ovarian failure, or be used in the treatment of infertility," said Wu.

This adult stem cell breakthrough has the potential to revolutionize the world of infertility treatment.

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Two families share their true embryo adoption story (Video)

2010-05-17T09:10:00.000-06:00

Embryo Donation and Adoption has touched the lives of countless families in the United States and around the world.

This unique fertility and adoption alternative allows couples who have remaining embryos from In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatment to donate their embryos to another family.

For the recipient couple, it provides an opportunity to experience pregnancy and give birth to their adopted child.

Below is a short video describing the incredible experience two families had with Embryo Adoption. The Spohrs and the Oviatts tell an inspiring story about how this amazing option changed their lives forever.

Perhaps their story will speak to you...

Share your Embryo Donation and Adoption story with us!

2010-05-10T08:50:00.000-06:00

Have you or someone you know experienced the joy of pregnancy through Embryo Donation and Adoption? Are you just now beginning (or considering pursuing) this as an infertility alternative?

Would you like to share your journey through Embryo Adoption and help bring hope to the thousands of other families out there experiencing many of the same challenges?

The Embryo Adoption Awareness Center blog is currently looking for a handful of individuals or families who would be willing to share their story of involvement with Embryo Donation and Adoption via this blog.

We are looking for families who either have been through the process, are currently involved in an Embryo Donation or Adoption, or are planning on pursuing this adoption alternative in the near future. We may ask you to post once or twice, or an on-going basis if you are interested.

If you or someone you know might be interested, please e-mail Jeff at jeffd@nightlight.org for more information.

Thank you for reading and supporting the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center blog!

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Infertility's hidden effects

2010-05-03T08:10:00.000-06:00

Anyone who has ever experienced a battle with infertility knows all too well just how taxing the process of trying to achieve a pregnancy can be.

Of course, infertility has obvious physical ramifications. But the truth is the effects of infertility run much deeper than most people may realize.

According to a recent survey conducted by GfK Roper, infertility can have dramatic negative psychological effects on both men and women.

According to the survey, more than 70 percent of women say that infertility makes them feel "flawed." And women are not alone, as half (50 percent) of men surveyed say that infertility gives them a feeling of inadequacy as well.

Other notable data from the survey include:

- 53 percent of couples say they hide negative feelings about infertility from their partner
- 61 percent say they try to hide their feelings from family/friends
- 34 percent say they are less able to "confide their feelings" in others due to their struggles with infertility
- 65 percent say they "never considered" the possibility of infertility before trying to get pregnant

This study shows that infertility can have a profound impact on a person's life - far beyond the obvious issue of achieving pregnancy. In actuality, a person's self-esteem, as well as their relationship with their partner and with others, can take a serious hit.

"Couples undergoing fertility treatment often turn inward and stop confiding in family and friends because of the pain involved in talking about their struggle to conceive," said Barbara Collura, RESOLVE executive director. "It's important for couples to know that extensive resources exist to support them throughout the process."

Stress seems to be one of the common results of couples' battle with infertility, which is notable considering that stress is also one of the common causes of infertility.

In addition, the inability to achieve pregnancy can make sex less appealing for a couple, which can mean a couple has less sex.

These factors can result in a cycle of frustration and can prolong the effects of infertility. And this is why couples who struggle with infertility need to get as much help as possible as they navigate the difficult waters of the process.

If you or someone you know is struggling with infertility, visit the American Society of Reproductive Medicine's web site for help.

For more information on the alternative fertility option known as Embryo Donation and Adoption, visit www.embryoadoption.org.

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The complex causes of infertility

2010-04-26T08:02:00.001-06:00

Infertility is a common problem facing many couples today. And just as treatments for infertility are extensive and complex, so are the causes.

Some of the causes of infertility are obvious and fairly simple to correct. For example, a couple may simply not be having sex frequently enough to improve their chances of conceiving.

But most other times, the reasons are far more complicated lifestyle issues which cannot be changed overnight. For example, heavy use of alcohol, eating disorders and stress can all lead to higher rates of infertility.

In addition, there are various medical conditions that can also cause infertility.

For women, these include Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID), Polycistic ovary syndrome (PCO) and endometriosis. In men, medical reasons for infertility include prostate infections, diabetes and multiple sclerosis.

Contrary to often-cited myths, infertility is just as frequently cause by problems in the man as it is in the woman. And, according to Patient UK, in as many as 30 percent of infertility cases, no cause can be found at all!

The bottom line? There are many reasons couples everywhere struggle with infertility.

The good news for those couples is that there are plenty of fertility treatments available. To read more about these treatments, click here.

One of the newer and more unique options for infertile couples is Embryo Donation and Adoption. In this fertility alternative, an adoptive couple is able to "adopt" embryos that were created by another couple during IVF.

The adoptive couple then uses those embryos in their own attempt to achieve a pregnancy. Unlike traditional adoption, the adoptive couple actually gets to experience the joy of pregnancy and give birth to their adopted child.

Even couples who have tried some infertility treatments (such as IVF) and were unsuccessful may find success with Embryo Adoption. They simply must have no contraindications to carrying a pregnancy to term.

Have you or anyone you know pursued an Embryo Donation/Adoption? Leave us a comment and let us know.

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Long-term egg freezing offers infertile couples a new alternative

2010-04-19T09:20:00.008-06:00

It wasn't that long ago that infertility was an extremely difficult obstacle for couples to find their way around.

But these days, countless fertility treatments are available, giving infertile couples everywhere more hope than ever for achieving a pregnancy.

The latest fertility breakthrough may be long-term egg freezing. This procedure allows a woman's eggs to be extracted and frozen years before she plans on using them to achieve a pregnancy.

These eggs can be frozen indefinitely. Once the woman is ready to pursue pregnancy, the eggs can be fertilized and then transferred back into the woman's uterus, allowing an older woman to get pregnant using much younger, much healthier eggs.

This option, proponents say, gives women far more flexibility in treatment. For example, a woman can still pursue her career or wait on finding a partner/sperm donor, knowing that when she is ready to start a family she will still have healthy eggs available for use.

Dr. Randall Craig, Medical Director at the Fertility Treatment Center in Tempe, Ariz., helped design the technology for this treatment and recently assisted in the first frozen egg pregnancy in the southwestern United States.

Dr. Craig recently told KTVK in Phoenix that this option is especially attractive to women facing serious medical issues, including treatment for cancer.

"We stimulate the ovaries before they do chemotherapy or radiation therapy, freeze their eggs, then they can have their cancer therapy," he said.

According to www.extendfertility.com, the average cost of freezing and storing eggs is between $9,000 and $13,000 per cycle, not including any medications or the eventual costs of IVF.

In addition, according to Dr. Craig, the pregnancy success rate for frozen eggs is typically between 1/3 and 1/2 of success rates using frozen embryos (including through Embryo Donation and Adoption), though he does expect newer technology to greatly improve those rates significantly.

Is this a fertility option you would ever consider pursuing?

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Availibility of Embryo Adoption Expands Through Possible Partnership (Part 3)

2010-04-12T08:38:00.001-06:00

Adoption Center for Family Building (ACFB) and Fertility Centers of Illinois (FCI) are considering partnering together to create an exciting new embryo adoption partnership in the state of Illinois. This partnership would allow for a mutually-beneficial arrangement between clinic and agency.

For adoption agencies that are interested in creating a similar working relationship with a clinic in their own city, ACFB Director Tobi Ehrenpreis said the key is beginning a dialogue.

"I think you have to establish what the need is for it by pulling together people who are interested and have expertise and getting them in the room to talk about it," she said. "If the practice believes that this is a good idea, they'll listen."

Dr. Marie Davidson, a clinical psychologist at FCI who also serves on the board of directors at ACFB, said finding the right person to approach within the clinic is a main ingredient for success.

"I think step one is to do some basic research on clinics in the area that store embryos and could use some help," Davidson said. "You need to find the right practice and then, even more important, you need to find the right person. And, in addition, have something well-enough developed that you can hand it to them and say: 'Here's what we can do.'"

While the potential partnership between ACFB and FCI is still in its early stages, both Ehrenpreis and Davidson said they believe it will be a successful venture. And Davidson believes it is a model that not only can be successful in Chicago, but for other agencies and clinics nationwide.

"From my perspective, this answers a lot of questions and meets a lot of needs for many people out there," Davidson said. "We're all in the same business of trying to help people. It's a marvelous way to connect the two worlds."

For more information about Adoption Center for Family Building, visit www.centerforfamily.com. For further details on how your agency can pursue a partnership like this one, please contact the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

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Availability of Embryo Adoption expands through possible partnership (Part 2)

2010-04-05T08:10:00.025-06:00

In last week's blog, we mentioned that the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center has identified four levels of involvement for adoption agencies interested in Embryo Adoption.

The fourth level of involvement is partnering with a fertility clinic to create a local embryo adoption program. One agency that has pursued this partnership model is Adoption Center for Family Building (ACFB) in Skokie, Illinois, which is pursuing a partnership with Fertility Centers of Illinois (FCI).

This particular agency had the benefit of an inside connection at the clinic in Dr. Marie Davidson, a clinical psychologist at FCI, who also serves on the board of directors at ACFB. Davidson said the initial reaction from the clinic about partnership was positive.

"We felt this was a wonderful meeting of needs," said Davidson. "We have the embryos and the patients who are struggling with what to do with their remaining embryos. We just hadn't started an embryo donation program yet because we didn't htink we could do it well. We didn't have the skills or the people to do it."

But the concept of working in conjunction with an adoption agency seemed like a perfect fit. Tobi Ehrenpreis, Executive Director of ACFB, said that the fertility center was eager to move forward on the proposal.

"Everyone was extremely supportive of the idea," said Ehrenpreis. "I'm sure that over time there are going to be a few glitches. But we came into this knowing that we wouldn't make any hard and fast decisions."

Find out what these experts say are the keys for an agency beginning an Embryo Adoption partnership in next week's blog...

For more information about Adoption Center for Family Building, visit www.centerforfamily.com. For further details on how your agency can pursue a partnership like this one, please contact the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

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Availability of Embryo Adoption expands through possible partnership (Part 1)

2010-03-29T08:48:00.009-06:00

In 2009, the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center identified four levels of agency involvement with Embryo Donation and Adoption. The fourth level is to begin partnering with a local fertility clinic(s) to provide Embryo Adoption services to clients in your area.

This model allows for a mutually-beneficial relationship between agency and clinic. There are now several agencies across the country that are currently involved in or are pursuing this type of partnership.

One of the agencies considering this innovative path is Adoption Center for Family Building (ACFB) in Skokie, IL, which began pursuing a partnership with Fertility Centers of Illinois (FCI) beginning in the spring of 2009.

Tobi Ehrenpreis, Founder and Executive Director of ACFB, said the initial goal was to create a local “advisory board” of experts from the adoption, fertility and legal communities to discuss what a partnership would look like.

“We came up with a plan to put together an advisory board of attorneys from the area, an ethicist, one of the infertility doctors from the clinic, an embryologist… basically we got together all of the different pieces of this process,” she said.

“We really wanted to evaluate whether there was a need for (an Embryo Donation/Adoption program). And it was pretty universal that there was.”

Read more about this exciting potential partnership in our next blog...

For more information about Adoption Center for Family Building, visit www.centerforfamily.com. For further details on how your agency can pursue a partnership like this one, please contact the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.

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How old is too old for fertility treatment?

2010-03-22T08:36:00.004-06:00

A 59-year-old British woman in will soon become the oldest person ever to be offered fertility treatment in the United Kingdom, according to a recent story by the Daily Mail.

Susan Tollefsen, a retired teacher who already has one child, was approved for In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatments by a unanimous senior staff vote at London Women's Clinic in January.

Previously, government guidelines in the country have strongly recommended that clinics do not offer IVF to women over the age of 40.

But, due to the fact that Ms. Tollefsen is in good health, carried a pregnancy to term two years ago, and also considering the fact that her husband is 11 years younger than she is, the clinic has agreed to help her conceive.

The decision has sparked considerable ethics debate in the U.K. and begs an important question: how old is too old for fertility treatment?

In the United States, the general practice among clinicians is not to offer IVF to women above the age of 45, though no official government guidelines currently exist. Some clinics may say 40, others may extend the limit closer to 50.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, babies are almost never born from IVF in women age 44 and over (in cases where the woman's own eggs are used in the process).

Even more of an issue, some say, is the welfare of the children who are born to women of this age. If a parent is already in their fifties (or older) when the child is born, is it safe to expect the parent to remain healthy enough to raise that child?

But Ms. Tollefsen's doctor, Peter Bowen-Simpkins, argues that their clinic treats each case separately and, in this example, has done nothing controversial.

"We are not opening the floodgates to anyone wandering around the streets in their 50s who wants a child," he tells the Daily Mail. "We don't need legislation. We've got the HFEA, who are the Government body, and they regulate us. If they felt we were going beyond what was proper they would take away our license."

However, just seven months before, Dr. Bowen-Simpkins himself argued that there should be an age limit on IVF in a Times op-ed, saying that "a 45-year-old is very different from a 65-year-old."

This debate once again sheds light on how little there is in the way of guidlines or laws governing infertility practices -both in the U.S. and abroad.

What do you think? Should there be stricter limits in place on how old you can be to receive fertility treatment?

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