Egg freezing has been around for quite some time now; however, it has gained a significant share of importance in the recent past. With growing awareness of reproductive health and increasing women’s empowerment, this advanced technique in fertility care is becoming increasingly common among couples and individuals, providing them a chance to embrace parenthood later in life.
Freeze your eggs, not your choices:
In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Swati Mishra, IVF Specialist at Birla Fertility and IVF in Kolkata, shared, “The process of egg freezing also known as oocyte cryopreservation is a form of assisted reproductive technology (ART) of extracting, freezing and storing women’s eggs to preserve their ability to reproduce later in life. It not only helps women freeze their own eggs for later usage, but the same technique helps in the case of egg donation, where someone else’s egg is used to conceive. Since women are born with a finite number of eggs, the quality and quantity of which start declining in the late 30s, egg freezing offers an effective way to preserve the quality of eggs for later usage.”
She revealed, “Preserving healthy eggs at the most fertile age can increase the chances of a healthy pregnancy without the risk of genetic abnormalities or miscarriage. When suffering from chronic diseases like cancer, autoimmune conditions, or ovarian problems, freezing eggs early on can protect them from the damaging effects of treatments like chemotherapy or other medications that may impair fertility. Whether planning to conceive later in life due to career, studies, finding the right partner or by choice, egg freezing is a proactive measure to preserve fertility without worrying about the potential impact of age or health on the chances of conception.”
Although freezing eggs is a great technological advancement, improving the chance of conceiving in the late 30s and 40s, it does not guarantee pregnancy or live birth all the time. Dr Swati Mishra informed, “Every pregnancy comes with its share of risks as several factors are in play when trying to conceive and the availability of a healthy egg is just one of them. In some cases, even if embryos are developed, there is a marginal risk of abnormality, miscarriage, and failed implantation.”
The truth about egg freezing: Is it right for you?
Bringing her expertise to the same, Dr Tanya Buckshee Rohatgi, Director – Reproductive Medicine, Onco – Fertility and IVF at Max Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi’s Panchsheel park, explained, “Elective egg freezing is a novel promising fertility treatment that helps a woman work along side her body’s biology with the advantage of freezing her eggs at a younger age and allowing her a chance of planning pregnancy at her own pace without stressing about her biological clock or her career goals or finding the right partner. Women are born with fixed numbers of eggs, the quality and quantity of which decline with increasing age. This decline varies between women and is dependent on other parameters as well for example lifestyle factors like smoking and weight of the woman and her overall medical status.”
She elaborated, “Elective egg freezing, or oocyte cryopreservation, is an IVF procedure that involves taking fertility hormonal injections typically for around 8–14 days along with ultrasound monitoring to assess response of the ovaries, which is then followed by an a short surgical egg retrieval procedure under anesthesia. Mature eggs are then frozen in the IVF Lab by a process called Fast freeze- Vitrification which can then be used at a later stage when she’s ready for pregnancy. Testing a woman’s egg reserve -Ovarian Reserve Tests – ultrasound and blood hormonal tests-FSH, LH, Estradiol and AMH is done during Day 2-5 of her periods to assess her egg reserve and plan the treatment.”
According to Dr Tanya Buckshee Rohatgi, the best time to undergo this process is during 20’s and early 30’s. She said, “At 35 years or younger, freezing about 10-14 Mature eggs gives a good chance of future pregnancy compared with about 15-20 Mature eggs as the age increases beyond 35yrs . Hence, more than one such cycle of freezing may be required to freeze sufficient mature eggs for optimal outcomes. Recent studies have reassuringly shown that the live birth rates and health outcomes of babies born from fresh eggs versus frozen eggs were similar. This process can also be offered to women undergoing surgery for medical conditions like severe endometriosis or even cancer patients before cancer treatments that can impact fertility. This process is not limited to single women even married women can be offered this option giving them the benefit of single ownership of their eggs.”
The fertility expert cautioned, “Medical risks associated with this treatment are those that can result from elevated hormone levels that occur with ovarian stimulation, such as mood swings, headaches and ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome (OHSS). After the egg retrieval procedure women may also experience pain, cramping and bloating. There is a cost of egg freezing and annual storage fee that can vary between centers with an additional cost of thawing and fertilizing the eggs to make embryos when she’s ready for pregnancy. The success of this freezing process is also skill dependent hence, centers with well trained professionals give best outcomes. Moreover, this approach does not guarantee a pregnancy in the future. This valuable option gives a woman both choice and flexibility to preserve her reproductive potential without the strain of her ticking biological clock whilst keeping her possibility of a natural conception at a later age.”
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.