Becoming an egg donor is not an easy decision to make. But once you have, you will always know that you helped a couple fulfill their lifelong dream of having their own family. This is a joy that will last, for both you and the recipient of your donated eggs, a lifetime.
Women between the ages of 21 and 28, from any ethnic background may qualify for our anonymous egg donor program. A woman may donate a maximum of six times. Upon completion of a cycle, you will be financially compensated for your time and effort associated with the donation process. Of course, the sense of fulfillment you’ll receive from renewing an infertile couple’s sense of hope is priceless. With your help, their dream of having a baby could finally come true.
To initiate the screening process, we would have you complete a two part application online. This application will allow us to determine if you qualify for our egg donor program and enable us to begin the process of screening to see if you are a suitable candidate for egg donation.
Once you have completed the application online and have been qualified to continue, an initial consultation will be scheduled with a Nurse Coordinator. During this visit, the donation process will be discussed in detail. In order to complete the medical portion of the donor application process, a variety of medical tests including a psychological evaluation will also be scheduled. Some of these medical tests must be performed at specific points throughout your menstrual cycle and for that reason, may require more than one visit. There will be no cost incurred to you as you complete the screening process, or applied to your insurance.
After all testing is completed, reviewed and approved by the Egg Donor Team you will be a part of our donor roster. Our recipients are given a password to access our secure website to view your profile online, or you will be given the opportunity to donate immediately for the frozen egg bank. Again, no costs will be incurred to you once you begin your donation cycle.
Once the egg donation cycle begins, you will be given medications for up to 12 days to stimulate multiple egg production in your ovaries. At the same time, the recipient’s uterus is being prepared through medications to receive the resulting embryos.
Then, at a time determined by the physician, you will be given IV sedation and your eggs will be retrieved via transvaginal ultrasound. The egg retrieval will be performed at our office.
Once the eggs have been retrieved, your portion of the egg donation process is complete. You will need to call with Day 1 of next menses to schedule Day 3 ultrasound to insure that ovaries have returned to their normal state.
The anonymous egg donation process, from initial application to egg retrieval, may take up to three months to complete if you are matched with a recipient. The initial screening tests can be arranged to accommodate your schedule. However, it is important to note that during the stimulation phase (Step Four) of the cycle, you may need to be seen in our offices every one or two days in order for the Donor Team to monitor your progress. Blood work will be taken and ultrasounds will be performed to check your hormone levels and visualize the number and size of your egg follicles. These monitoring visits are extremely important. Not only do they ensure your safety throughout the process, they also provide essential information that will help us maximize the success of the cycle.