Donor
programs

Couples may select a donor program when there are problems with their own spermatozoids or ova, or if they have a disease which may be inherited by their child. In doing so, either the ova of anonymous donors, which data is kept in the clinic database, or the ova of non-anonymous donors (relatives or friends).

• Donor sperm bank
• Donor’s ova

In MC “Gameta” the donor programs are attended by an experienced psychologist who knows well donor aspects and can assist to make the decision.

Cryobank of donor sperm, ova and embryos

In the majority of cases donor sperm is taken from the sperm bank, and the sperm donors pass through extensive medical and genetic examination, The obtained sperm is frozen and kept in quarantine for 6 months. Afterwards the donors are again examined for HIV, syphilis and hepatitis because these diseases can be identified on the lapse of several months after getting infected (penetration of the disease carrier in the organism). Use of the unfrozen donor sperm is allowed after receipt of the repeated negative results of the donor’s analyses in 6 months.

Donor sperm can be used for intrauterine insemination (IUS) or in IVF cycle. On the whole, the use of sperm after cryopreservation instead of native (fresh) sperm does not reduce treatment effectiveness. The donor ova are used for treating women having healthy uterine but absence or poor quality of the ova, for instance in women 40+. The ova donors also undergo the same medical and genetic examination as the sperm donors.

Donorship of ova is a more complicated procedure than the sperm donorship and is accomplished as a part of the IVF program, At first the menstrual cycles of the ova donor and the recipient (a woman who will receive the embryos obtained after fertilization of the donor ova) are to be synchronized.

Then, the ova donor gets stimulation of ovulation and a puncture of the ovaries while the recipient takes hormonal medication to prepare the uterine for pregnancy.

After the puncture donor ova are fertilized with the sperm of the husband of the infertile woman and transfer such ova in her uterine. In doing so the patient (recipient) will not be the genetic mother of her husband’s child but she will carry the child and give such child a birth. The ova donors are subject to a great risk and difficulties than the sperm donors. Therefore, they get the appropriate remuneration for their participation in the donor program.

Use of donors’ ova is a costly treatment method because selection, and examination of donors and their remuneration increase the IVF procedure cost. However, relatively high success of the IVF programs that involve donor ova ensure a very high probability of success for many couples. Donor ova are used in almost 10% of all ART cycles.

Use of the donor sperm and ova is a complex solution which will influence all further life of the couple.  A psychological interview with an experienced psychologist who knows well donorship aspects can help to make a decision. In our Centre there is a psychologist who has a lot of experience of work with infertile couples.