Patient Portal
You may have heard about oocyte vitrification. The use of vitrification technology to freeze eggs offers a new option for fertility preservation for single women who have not yet chosen a partner, and some experts have even proclaimed that egg freezing with vitrification is that magic bullet that will free a woman from age-related infertility.
But what is this? Basically, “vitrification” refers to a gentler form of freezing cells. It is a cryopreservation technique that is superior to previous slower-freezing techniques, and the results are often better; the integrity of the cellular structure is better maintained. RRC boasts a 100% vitrification lab– we use this newer process to freeze all eggs and embryos.
One must first understand the difference between egg freezing and embryo (fertilized egg) freezing. “Egg freezing” simply refers to cryopreserving a single, unfertilized cell. In the case of a young, single woman, or a cancer patient wanting to preserve her fertility, freezing fertilized embryos would only be an option if donor sperm is used to fertilize the eggs. But can freezing the single cell for later fertilization really bypass age-related infertility? Very likely, given that frozen embryos and probably frozen eggs do not age.
Reproductive Resource Center (RRC) is the first infertility clinic in the area to have an ongoing donor oocyte vitrification pregnancy. This means that we currently have a patient who is pregnant and is the recipient of a previously frozen donor egg. Her partner’s sperm was used to fertilize the egg. What does this mean? This represents a huge step forward in infertility treatment. The logistics of matching donors with recipients is markedly simplified and more flexible. Where there was once a major mismatch in supply and demand, there is now the option for a woman to use a donor egg to achieve pregnancy when she is ready.
Some exciting news: RRC is now a participating partner with several national donor egg banks – which means that if you are a woman seeking donor eggs, you no longer need to wait for a match! Eggs are ready and waiting, with the only delay being the time it takes for the recipient to choose from an online catalog of already vitrified (frozen) eggs. This also eliminates any potential chance (as could happen in a fresh donor egg cycle) that a donor may unexpectedly have a bad cycle and produce few or no eggs; which is absolutely heartbreaking to the recipient.
Our clinic is pioneering the use of vitrification to achieve pregnancy. Perhaps you’re a candidate to be an egg donor or egg recipient. Thorough medical histories and evaluations will be conducted by Dr. Celeste Brabec and/or Dr. Phipps our two board-certified Reproductive Endocrinologist