Donor Eggs, donor sperm, Ireland, Uncategorized

Ireland – ‘Hello, my beautiful donor baby’: The Irish people becoming parents with donor eggs and sperm

Source Her

Do you know a couple who have experienced fertility problems?

Lots of us would probably say yes – but do you know anyone who has conceived a baby via donor sperm or egg?
Chances are you do.

As a nation, we’re beginning to strip back the veil of secrecy that once hung over infertility and assisted reproduction – but the last taboo may be the thousands of Irish babies that have been born with the help of a donor.

There are no official figures for Ireland but according to Dr Florencia Steinvarcel of Dublin’s Sims Clinic, around 40 per cent of the people who have IVF treatment there use a donor sperm or egg.

Dr Simon Fishel, founder of Beacon CARE Fertility, meanwhile estimates that 5,000 to 7,000 people a year travel abroad from Ireland and the UK just for egg donations.

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Donor Eggs, Sperm Donation, Sperm Donor

Letter: Salonen uses public voice to spread misinformation

Source Inforum

I was dismayed to read the rather closed-minded offering published March 17 from Ms. Salonen, who is the mother of five children. While I am not in a position, as a physician, to routinely determine what is right, and what is wrong, I am in a position as a reproductive endocrinologist to know that it is quite dangerous to lump things as important as creating families together.

To paint with a broad brush that it is not OK to use “third party reproduction” is hurtful and inappropriate. Does she disprove of helping single women who have a strong support network in place conceive using donor sperm? Should donor sperm be used in a heterosexual couple who choose this means of having a family?

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Donor Eggs, Egg Donor, Europe, Gestational surrogacy, intended parents, IVF, Sperm Donor, Surrogacy, Surrogate Mother

Fertty International: Study Reveals Americans Opting for Assisted Reproductive Treatment Abroad

Source: Cision PR Newswire

The high cost of assisted reproductive treatment in North America is forcing many US citizens to look to other countries for high-quality medical care at a lower cost.

Fertty International. A modern clinic, for new models of the family (PRNewsfoto/Fertty International)

In 2016, nearly 1.4 million Americans travelled outside the U.S. in search of medical treatment, compared to 750,000 in 2008. Currently, medical tourism, or cross border reproductive care as the media have labelled it, is rising by 25% per year.

The primary reasons for these trips, according to a study conducted by the Task Force on Ethics and Law from the ESHRE, and published in the scientific journal Human Reproduction (Shenfield et al. 2010), is the difficulty in accessing certain treatments due to legal restrictions, long waiting lists, and thirdly, the search for high-quality reproductive treatment.

The main countries hosting these medical tourists in Europe are Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Switzerland, Slovenia and Spain. The fact that the latter has the most permissive legislation in terms of assisted reproduction, together with the European regulations on mobilisation of biological samples, and high medical and technical quality make Spain the top destination. It is also the country with the most egg donations.

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Donor Eggs, IVF Treatment, Sperm Donor, Surrogacy, Surrogate Mother

Women seeking cheap fertility treatment abroad

Source:  The Times

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Women travelled for conventional IVF treatments, egg donation and surrogacy services SEBASTIAN KAULITZKI/GETTY IMAGES

More than 3,000 women travel abroad for cheap assisted human reproduction treatments every year, a leading fertility doctor has estimated.

Dr John Kennedy, medical director of Virtus Health, the largest provider of fertility services in Ireland, said the figure included those who travelled to get conventional IVF treatments, egg donation and surrogacy services.

He said it was difficult to get exact figures because some women travelled without informing their fertility doctors, but that 3,000 was a reasonable estimate. The average cost of a cycle of IVF in Ireland is between €5,000 and €7,000, but can cost less than €3,000 in some eastern European countries. Dr Kennedy said these countries were always going to be cheaper, but there could be differences in quality of care.

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Donor Eggs, Donor Embryos, donor sperm

Ireland – Some fertility clinics ‘exploiting couples with unnecessary tests’

Source: Irish Independent News

Couples who are undergoing fertility treatment in some clinics are being “financially exploited” and having additional investigations that are not necessary, the Oireachtas health committee was told yesterday.

Dr John Waterstone of the Irish Fertility Society said the proposed Government legislation on assisted reproduction should outlaw this.

He said people who are trying to have a baby can end up spending thousands of euro more on these procedures, which will not improve their chances of success.

He was appearing with other fertility experts before the committee to discuss the proposed legislation.

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Donor Eggs, donor sperm, Japan

Japan – More children of donor sperm, eggs being told truth about birth

Source: The Arabi Shimbum

Using picture books, hand-drawn cards and simple honesty, an increasing number of parents are explaining the facts to children born through donor sperm and eggs.

While it was previously thought unadvisable to tell the children the truth, the importance of their right to know their origin of birth is spreading around Japan.

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