Fertility Preservation

Fertility Preservation Options

Egg Freezing

Egg freezing process involves forming multiple eggs with daily injections for 10-12 days and then retrieving them under anaesthesia and freezing them for future use. These eggs can be stored for many years.

Egg freezing may be an option for:

• Women who want to delay pregnancy,
• Those who have started a IVF cycle and have good quality eggs that could be saved for future cycle
• Women who are about to begin treatment for cancer.
• Women who do not have a male partner at present but want to preserve their egg for future pregnancy planning.
• Women who are still fertile but at a risk of early menopause.

Embryo Freezing

Embryo freezing involves stimulatingthe ovaries to form multiple eggs. These eggs are retrieved under anaesthesia and fertilized in the laboratory using sperms of the male partner or sperm donor. These eggs are fertilized to create embryos with in-vitro fertilization (IVF) process. These embryos can be stored for many years.

Embryo freezing may be an option for:

• Women who are about to begin treatment for cancer.
• Women who are still fertile but at a risk of early menopause.
• Couples who want to delay pregnancy for few years.

Sperm Freezing

Sperm freezing is a process for freezing the sperm cells using the cryopreservation technique. The sperms are preserved in fluid nitrogen (-196°C) and can be stored for a long period of time.

Sperm freezing may be an option for:

• Male suffering with diabetes, which can cause erectile dysfunction in future.
• Males starting a Chemotherapy or radiation therapy for cancer.
• Male who are away or travelling on the day of assisted reproductive treatment
• Sperm donors

Fertility Preservation for Cancer Patients

If you are a risk of infertility from cancer treatment and wish to conceive a biological child of your own in future, it is recommended to choose fertility preservation options prior to starting a cancer treatment.

For women, depending on your age and other factors like having a male partner at the time of preservation, you may chose whether to go for just egg freezing or embryo freezing. Males suffering with cancer and about to start the treatment for the same are recommended to go for sperm freezing for future use.