Research shows IVF motives

Women in their late 30s are freezing their
eggs because they have not yet found “Mr Right”, research indicates. Half of
the women surveyed by a Belgian clinic presented at a fertility conference
intended to freeze their eggs to take the pressure off finding a partner. A
third froze their eggs as an “insurance policy” against infertility.

A separate UK survey found that many
students would also consider the procedure to focus on a career before becoming
a mother. This survey of nearly 200 students showed that eight in 10 studying
medicine would freeze their eggs to postpone motherhood.

Younger, healthier eggs pose a higher
chance of success, but many women currently freezing their eggs are in their
late 30s and are doing it as a “last resort”. The process costs around £3,000
per cycle and some women may need to undergo as many as three cycles.

Dr Julie Nekkebroeck, speaking at the
European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology conference, who carried out
the small Belgian study of 15 women, also found that 27% wanted their
relationship to blossom before they broached the topic of children. The average
age of the women was 38, and they did not expect to use their eggs until around
age 43.

“We found that they had all had
partners in the past, and one was currently in a relationship, but they had not
fulfilled their desire to have a child because they thought that they had not
found the right man,” she said. ~ BBC News, Jun 28

Jared Yee
IVF
social infertility

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Michael Cook

Michael Cook edits BioEdge, a bioethics newsletter, and MercatorNet, an on-line magazine whose focus is human dignity. He writes from Sydney, Australia.

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