More Information

How many cycles can an egg provider undergo?

If the first cycle is unsuccessful following embryo transfer, two further attempts may be allowed, subject to a review by a Bridge fertility specialist.

Important Notes

We are obliged to notify the HFEA of any babies born as a result of egg donation.

It is therefore important to declare previous participation in any sharing programme or any donations made previously at other centres.

Once ten pregnancies have been achieved through donation, the Egg Sharer may not donate again unless the purpose is to achieve a sibling pregnancy.

You may specify a lower limit than this, if you so wish.

What information will the recipient be given about me?

All information given at the time of donation will be non-identifying.

Will I have a continuing responsibility to any child born following the donation?

No. By law (HFE Act, 1990) the person donating the eggs will not be the legal parent of any resulting offspring. At the time of the donation you relinquish all legal rights and claims over offspring that may result from donated eggs. In the same way, no donor-conceived child has any legal or financial claim over the donor at any time in the future.

Will I be held responsible if a child born from my donation is disabled in any way?

It is your responsibility to inform us of the possibility of any genetic or inheritable disease present in your immediate family and failure to do so is an offence. It is the right of any child disabled as a result of failure to pass on necessary information to sue the donor for damages.

Will I incur any additional costs?

Once you have been accepted onto the Egg-sharing programme your costs will be minimal but you should be aware of the following possibilities and we suggest you budget accordingly, just to be on the safe side.

• The HFEA Licence Fee is a compulsory cost. It is currently £104.50

• You may require ICSI and, in this case, the additional reduced contribution for the procedure is £780.00.

You will also be asked to pay for the following, if they are required or if you make a specific request.

Donor sperm

Anaesthetist present at Egg Collection

Assisted hatching

Freezing and Cryopreservation of suitable embryos

Subsequent frozen / thawed embryo transfer

Any other special individual or personal medical needs

In addition, the partner of the Egg Sharer will be charged for surgical sperm retrieval (PESA or TESE and sperm freezing and storage) if one of these procedures is found to be necessary.

Any charges will be at the Bridge rate current at the time of the procedure concerned.

If you have any other questions about being an egg sharer then we strongly suggest that you visit the HFEA website on www.hfea.gov.uk which is an excellent source of information or call the HFEA on 020 7291 8200 for further information.

What about anonymity?

The law regarding anonymity was amended in 2005 and, for the avoidance of doubt, we provide the HFEA's guidance notes below.

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) Register and Confidentiality

The HFEA keeps a confidential register of information about donors, patients and treatments. This register was set up on 1 st August 1991 and therefore contains information concerning children conceived from licensed treatments from that date onwards.

As from the year 2008, people aged 16+ (if contemplating marriage) or 18, who ask the HFEA, will be told whether or not they were born as a result of licensed assisted conception treatment and, if so, whether they are related to the person they want to marry.

As the law now stands, children born as a result of treatment in the UK using donor eggs will have the right to learn the identity of the donor on reaching the age of eighteen if the treatment was carried out on or after 1st April 2005. No information about patients, their children and donors related to treatment before this date* will be given out by the Authority under any circumstances other than those outlined above. The names of the children are not collected.

 

*An exception would be if the child was born with a disability as a result of a donor's failure to disclose inherited disease. If he or she were to sue a clinic for damages, a court might require the HFEA to disclose the donor's identify under the Congenital Disabilities (Civil Liabilities) Act 1976.

 

Bridge is licensed by the Human Fertilisation & Embryology Authority to perform IVF, microsurgical fertilisations and treatments using donated eggs and sperm and to store genetic material.