For those that did DE, how much did it cost?

[Anonymous]

My husband and I have had a rough IVF journey, with many retrievals, many blasts, but no euploid embryos. We did our last cycle in June at a top clinic and I got COVID in the lead up to the retrieval - didn't test positive for it though until much later, so I went through with the retrieval but all the eggs were really messed up and we were out within 24 hours.

We did everything we could, and if we go any further trying with my own eggs then we won't be able to afford the donor egg process. This community has helped me feel more comfortable about proceeding to donor eggs, and I've learned a lot from many of you.

For those who used donor eggs, how much did everything associated with the process cost? How long did it take between when you initiated the process and when you were ready for a transfer? My husband and I are trying to wrap our minds about all the different aspects to figure out how much we need to have in savings.

[Anonymous]

I’m so sorry that you have been through hell, OP.

I’m glad that you’re researching DE because suddenly your odds change and motherhood is a real possibility.

I am working with Zlin in the Czech Republic. Donor egg treatment is 5,600 euros per cycle, 2 blastocysts guaranteed. You get all of the eggs collected from the donor! There is no waitlist, things can move fast. https://www.ivf-zlin.com/

If you email, they will send you a detailed email that covers everything-the matching process, timeline, steps, & meds. I recommend the coordinators Anna and Jana. They have a price list on the website. It is very transparent which I loved after 2 clinics here where the financial side is very frustrating.

In my research, Zlin is considerably more favorable than the most cost effective option in the USA which is CNY Fertility where donor egg IVF with a package of 6 eggs and remote monitoring is estimated at $11,103. No guarantee. Higher price and the eggs are split between more recipients. https://www.cnyfertility.com/donor-egg-cost/

[Anonymous]

PP again. There is a good podcast, Donor Egg Mamma, that I would recommend. It really helped me wrap my head around DE.

Good luck on your next leg of the journey!

[Anonymous]

Thank you, I really appreciate the suggestions!

I will start by checking out the podcast you recommended. And just knowing there are different options and pricing is such a relief. A friend of mine was an egg donor who worked with an agency, and when she explained the breakdown in costs to the recipient couple it was well over $60k (btwn agency fees, donor's IVF cycle, donor's payment, etc.).

In your process with Zlin, do you go out there for the transfer or do they send the eggs to a clinic you're working with in the US?

One thing I'm trying to educate myself on is the pros/cons between working with an egg bank or the donor options available through the clinics.

My husband and I traveled cross country for our IVF cycles which resulted in us being co-located for the past 2 years and so while we'd be open to Zlin, it would be a nice change of pace to work with a local clinic if any are affordable.

[Anonymous]

If memory serves, about $50,000 for frozen.

[Anonymous]

There are many options and vastly different price points, so it’s a lot to consider on top of working through the emotions.

Something that I really like about the podcast is that she has women who have gone abroad, stayed local, used frozen eggs, fresh eggs, egg banks, private agencies, clinic based donors, anonymous donors, known donors, open ID at age 18 and on…. There is no one pathway.

For us cost was very important without sacrificing quality. This can be a challenge, so we needed to be open to different approaches.

You asked about travel. With Zlin, your husband can fly over solo to Vienna (nonstop) and the clinic’s hotel will provide car service, each way is 250 euros. The hotel is onsite at the clinic. My husband travelled there, spent the night, had a semen analysis with cryopreservation and consultation the next day. After that the coordinator walked him to the pharmacy and he purchased my transfer meds (about $350 I think). He left the next day. The sperm is there ready for the eggs this way. You can do a fresh fertilization, but for us, traveling on his schedule was more important.

For the transfer you fly over, stay a day to get the embryo, and head home.

I think that the package price includes a fresh transfer.

Always do the car service. My husband initially took the train from Vienna and it was an ordeal.

The thing that I like best is how kind and clear the coordinators are at communicating. Jana is the main one that I work with and she’s smart and responsive. She takes the time to answer each question and is polite and warm. The lab is excellent. Other than the distance I have no complaints!

I would encourage you to look into multiple options, listen to different women’s stories, and see what is right for you!

[Anonymous]

Would you ever consider donor embryo? I’d like to learn more about the costs.

[Anonymous]

We did a fresh transfer. I think the whole process was close to $60,000. This was 6 years ago. After 5 years of trying with my own eggs, this worked on the first try. Best decision ever. Good luck!!

[Anonymous]

Multiple losses patient here, we assumed that the base problem was my age/egg quality, as male partner testing didn't reveal any obvious issues. we did a shared risk 1:2 DE with PGT at a local well-known clinic for around $50k. In the first round we received 11 eggs, which resulted in 3 embryos, two of which were normal. Miscarried the first, have a toddler from our remaining embryo and a kitchen sink cycle. (steroids, lovenox, claritin, etc)

Retrieval was about 3.5 months after selection.

I'll note that in my experience with the donor portal, desirable donors tend to get snatched up in minutes or hours, whereas others can linger for weeks. You have to be looking frequently and be absolutely ready to pull the trigger when someone comes up that matches your preferences. This isn't a "we'll log in after dinner together on friday" exercise.

no regrets, super satisfied with outcome. we'd intended to be one and done. i suspect based on embryo count that there was some sort of unidentified male factor issue as well.

[Anonymous]

PP shared risk person: I'm adopted, so don't have any hangups about not being personally genetically related to my kiddo, but I definitely do love the fact that they basically came out as a little carbon copy of my spouse. i think we possibly would have considered donor embryo if multiple donor egg rounds didn't work out, but we didn't have to get to that bridge.

[Anonymous]

We did frozen donor egg shared risk at Shady Grove in 2018, so the costs might not be current. It cost $40,000 for the program. We got 6 eggs and 2 embryos. The first FET didn’t take but the second worked.
We considered donor embryo but the choices were very limited at the time.

[Anonymous]

We did this 14 years ago in Portland, OR. It cost about $36,000 plus $6,000 to the donor so $42K in total.

[Anonymous]

Hi, here’s an IVF toolkit that includes a calculator to help you estimate the cost of treatments: https://www.fertilityclinicsabroad.com/ivf-abroad-toolbox/ Good luck

[Anonymous]

Close to $100k. about 5 years ago. That included an agency, travel for me, DH and the donor. My understanding at the time was that this was definitely high. Not a shared egg lot, fresh eggs. It was successful on the first transfer, and we had many extra embryos. Once the donor was selected, the process was probably about 5-6 months. The donor did have a say in the schedule, of course. She did need to wait before traveling to do the retrieval, so that added time. From the egg retrieval to transfer was a couple months. We had the embryos tested and then got set up on the doc's schedule for the transfer.

[Anonymous]

We did fresh DE 15 years ago at a clinic on the other side of the country.
I think all in all (including meds, travel, etc) was close to $40K