Fresh IVF success only - Multiple failed FETs
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Anonymous
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Hi ladies-
I am coming off my second failed FET here in the last few months. The kicker is that these embryos (5 day "perfect" blasts) are all from my second successful fresh IVF cycle. I still have 2 frozens left from that fresh cycle but I'm starting to think maybe we should just skip right to fresh again. For the record, my first fresh IVF was a BFN and I had one frozen from that cycle which ended as a chemical (so I suppose something "took" during a frozen cycle, but we still weren't successful in the end.) Anyone have any similar experiences or should I just hold out hope that the remaining 2 frozens still might work? |
Anonymous
| What does your RE say? My guess is its just random, and those two frozen embryos are still as likely as a fresh cycle to work. But if money is no object, it couldn't hurt to try another fresh cycle. You'd still have those two frozen if it didn't work. |
Anonymous
| FETs are cheaper and less invasive. I'd be inclined to do the FET once more. I got pregnant on my 2nd FET after 2 fresh cycles that were BFN. |
Anonymous
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I only had success with frozen, not fresh, though in both your and my case our sample size is small (number of cycles is few so it's hard to draw a major conclusion).
I think there are a few questions to ask/consider, first perhaps being how many kids you want. If you only want one or two then try the frozen ones first. A FET is so much simpler than a fresh cycle (at least in my experience) and can be done within just a few weeks. If you think you want several kids then go ahead and do another fresh and try to get some more eggs/blasts for more options. If you transfer both of your frozen blasts at once and it fails then you could be going to another fresh cycle in as little as 2-3 months so it doesn't seem like a huge delay. Age, of course, is always a factor, but I'm not sure that a few months will make a dramatic difference. Money can be a factor also of course. Good luck! |
Anonymous
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OP here - thank you for all the support. I have a list of questions to ask the RE but we haven't spoken yet.
We do just want 1 maybe 2 more kids and stats say that FETs are just as successful as fresh, so I know I should go with the FETs in my head...it's just that "what if" feeling that is nagging and I want to skip right to the thing that worked for us previously. Money is definitely a concern but we are not comfortable transfering more than one embryo at a time so that draws things out time and money wise. |
Anonymous
I agree, although you should be aware that it's also possible to develop implantation issues between your first and second pregnancies. If you decide to do another fresh cycle, you might consider having genetic testing done on your embryos. It isn't cheap but if only a small percentage of the embryos you produce are viable (despite looking great) it might be less expensive than doing repeated ESET FETs and rolling the dice. If you still get a BFN or miscarry with a genetically normal embryo, you'll know to start exploring other potential problems. |
Anonymous
| Have you tried an Endo scratching prior to your FET? Something to talk to your RE about. |
Anonymous
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This was me exactly..well almost since I did 2 fresh cycles and then 2 FETs. Second FET was a chemical.
In my case, the first fresh IVF had resulted in MMC for which I got a D&C that resulted in scarring. The scarring wasn't found until I switched RE's (after having done the second fresh and two FETs). My first RE kept telling me it was just random, but we were now in the very rare sliver of people without success considering our ages and dx. After treating the scar tissues, we got a BFP after the next fresh IVF...though I suspect a FET would also have been successful. So it's unlikely you have exaclty my issue with scar tissue, but if I were in your shoes I'd push for more diagnositcs to figure out if there is some other issue leading to failure to implant. What helped us was seeking a second opinion, so you might consider that also. Can't tell you how much I recommend Dr. Frankfurter at GW. He pored over every detail of my previous cycles trying to figure out what was wrong. in my case it was structural, so hormone levels and BW were not so telling. But if those things are relevant to you, I feel confident he would notice. GL! This is a long road to travel...and it often sucks. |
Anonymous
Excellent suggestion. |
Anonymous
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OP here again. After my first failed FET I asked about the endo scratching and RE said that he wouldn't consider me an "implantation failure" at that point. Well now we're at my second failed FET and I will press again.
Also, I am worried about scar tissue like some others posted. I have had 3 abdominal sugeries (laparoscopy, appendectomy and a c-section for my first child.) Each time during transfer the RE can see my scar from my c-section but they get the catheter in no problem and I have asked twice if that could be an issue. "Nope" was always the answer I was told. PP, how did they treat your scar tissue? Did you have another surgery to have it removed? |
Anonymous
I'm PP. My scar tissue was removed during a hysteroscopy under anesthesia with microscissors (performed by Dr. Robinson at GW). I will say that I had three transfers post D&C, and each time they were able to get the catheter in...though doing so was typically very painful. It wasn't until I had a diagnostic hysteroscopy (this was after a clear HSG), that they found the scar tissue that in my case was covering my cervix. There was enough of an opening to get the catheter in, but it might have been interfering with placement during the transfer. Uterine scarring can be a very insidious contributor to IF, and given your history I would definitely seek out the opinion of someone who might investigate further. I obviously had luck at GW, though I've read on this forum that most of the better people are out of state (NY, I think). You might start with GW, but with so many surgeries (and an obvious scar already), you might be a case where it's really worth seeking out of state help. |
Anonymous
| OP, I was in exactly the same boat when I was trying for #2. For my first, I had success on my second fresh IVF attempt. When we started trying for #2, we had three frozen embryos, and transferred them one at a time over the course of about six months. None of them worked. After the second failed FET we had a conference with the doctor and I expressed the same concerns you have had and asked if we should just move to another fresh IVF rather than trying another FET. The RE recommended that we try one more FET before we moved to another fresh cycle, and unfortunately that third FET didn't work. I just had a nagging feeling and knew in my gut that they weren't going to work for me. We ended up doing another fresh cycle, transferred one embryo, and I got pregnant, resulting in my second child. Best of luck. |
Anonymous
| Thank you thank you 15:48 for your thoughtful comments. Did you end up doing PGD or any genetic testing or was it a straight fresh cycle? I just had a quick consult with my RE and he think we might just be dealing with more abnormal embryos that is typical for someone my age...so in the end, it's a numbers game. But if I did go for a fresh again, he might suggest doing PGD to weed out the embryos to see what's going on - BUT a PGD cycle is neccessarily a FET cycle too. |
Anonymous
| I just came across this while searching for failed FET after success of IVF. I just got a BFN with our 3rd FET. We had success with our fresh IVF a year ago but my first beta was 29 then only went to 36, then 288, then down to 150 then lost it. Can't figure out why the frozen won't work. Did you ever get answers from your RE? Any advice or input would be great. |