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For Donors
How to become an egg donorIf you should be interested to become an egg donor, please complete our online egg donor application form. We will then contact you within 48 hours and make an appointment with you where we will decide whether you qualify or not.Please don't apply if you are below 20 or over 32 years of age or if you are on injectable contraceptives. For the application form we will need as much information about you as possible. Remember that the information in the application form will be made available to any potential recipient so put a lot of personal data like hobbies, dislikes and likes as well as any academic or other achievements in there. Click here to submit your application Your name and address details will be kept completely confidential in line with South African legislation which stipulates that egg donation is an anonymous process. Please also include at least one childhood picture up to the age of about six with your application which will be made available to the recipient. Overview of the Treatment CycleAll donors are required to undergo controlled ovarian stimulation, in which medications are used to stimulate the ovary and produce multiple eggs. Donors are instructed how to take daily injections as part of the treatment cycle. The timing of the treatment cycle is based on the menstrual cycle. Medications begin at the start of the menstrual cycle and continue for approximately two weeks. There are about 3-4 visits to monitor the response with vaginal ultrasounds and blood tests. These visits take between 15-30 minutes and are done between 8:00 and 17:00. All of these tests are performed at no cost to the donor.Medications used in the egg donation program and their effects and side effects1. GonadotropinsThe most commonest medication used is GonalF , a pure recombinant preparation of human FSH (Follicle Stimulating Hormone)made from specially genetically engineered cells. Other HMG preparations used are Menopur and Menogon which are obtained from the urine of menopausal women. GonalF comes in prefilled pens for subcutaneous use and are easily self administered. The other HMG preparations have usually to be administered by a second person as they are for intramuscular application. These injections are usually started on day 2 or 3 of the cycle and given daily in doses specified by your doctor for about 8 - 9 days. This medication is needed to achieve follicular growth, meaning the maturing of eggs. Follicular growth has to be checked regularly by ultrasound examinations of the ovaries usually starting on day 8 of the cycle and then repeated at least every 2nd day until a follicular size of about 18-20 mm is reached. Side effects: Ovarian Hyperstimulation (OHSS) Symptoms are ovarian distention, abdominal fluid collection and occasionally fluid accumulation in the lung when OHSS is severe. Severe OHSS may require hospitalization to monitor kidney and respiratory function. The syndrome is self limiting, has no long term effects and usually only lasts for a few days. With conservative application of HMG and triggering of ovulation with GnRH the syndrome is an absolute rarity. 2. Human Chorionic Gonadotropin Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) is a polypeptide Hormone produced by the human placenta and is derived from human pregnancy urine. Reconstituted HCG should be kept refrigerated The action of HCG is virtually identical to the ovulation hormone LR. It stimulates the production of steroid hormones by stimulating the corpus luteum (follicle after ovulation) to produce progesterone, a vital hormone to maintain pregnancy. 36 hours after administration ovulation usually occurs and egg retrieval is timed to be 34 - 36 hours after the injection is given. Timing is extremely important. RCG secreted by placental cells of an implanting embryo will ensure continued production of estrogen and Progesterone to prevent menstruation and pregnancy loss. Side effects ( extremely rare!) : headache, nausea, irritability, fatigue and pain at the side of injection. 3. Leuprolide Acetate Leuprolide Acetate (Lucrin) is a so called Gonadotropin releasing hormone. It has similar activity to the natural Gonadotropin releasing hormone released by the hypothalamus. Given as a daily dose it will cause initial stimulation and then suppression of the ovaries and will suppress ovulation. Given in single dose it will cause release of LR and trigger ovulation. If used as a trigger for ovulation in IVF it has the main advantage that Ovarian Ryperstimulation does not occur, which only seems to be a problem after triggering with RCG. Side effects are extremely rare as used in an IVF program. Long term administration will cause menopausal symptoms like hot flushes, vaginal dryness, mood swings and changes in bone density but this does not apply to IVF. 4. GnRH Antagonist (Cetrotide) Cetrotide inhibits the effects of a natural hormone called Luteinising releasing hormone ( LHRH). LHRH regulates the function of another hormone called luteinising hormone (LH), which induces ovulation during a normal menstrual cycle. Cetrotide inhibits premature ovulation which is undesirable during hormone treatment for ovarian stimulation, as only mature eggs are suitable for fertilisation. Side effects are rare and include nausea and headaches as well as local reactions to the injection. 5. Use of Medications Egg donors use the same medication as fertility patients undergoing IVF. The sequence, dosage and schedule of administration of the drugs for each egg donor is carefully planned by the nurse coordinator in consultation with the fertility specialist. A special program will be set up which will guide the egg donor throughout the process. The egg retrievalOnce the follicles have reached the required size of about 18 - 20 mm the fertility specialist will ask you to take the final injection the so called trigger. That could either be HCG ( Pregnyl, Profasi, Ovidrel) or GnRH ( Lucrin). The injection has to be given usually in the middle of the night approximately 34 - 36 hours before the actual egg retrieval. If GnRH (Lucrin) is prescribed the injection has to be repeated 12 hours later. It is very important that the injection is given at exactly the time prescribed.You will be given the time when to be at the clinic. You must not eat and drink anything for about 8 hours the morning before the egg retrieval. The egg retrieval is done in theatre under anesthesia and an anesthetic specialist will look after you while asleep. It is a very short anesthesia, about 10 minutes, and the recovery is very fast. The egg retrieval is a vaginal procedure so you will have no scars on your abdomen. About an hour after the procedure you will be able to go home. Remember that you are not allowed to drive yourself and need somebody to fetch you. You might feel some discomfort on the day of the egg retrieval and you might experience a small amount of vaginal bleeding. These symptoms should abate after a day. If you should have any problems after that, please contact your fertility specialist immediately.
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Testimonials:From Our Donors..."I spent much of my late teenage years worrying about falling pregnant, as the last thing I wanted was to have a baby - then or ever. This got me thinking about the unfairness of the situation: I, who was presumably perfectly fertile, worried about an unwanted pregnancy while other women ached to conceive a baby. When I obtained some information about egg donation, I was thrilled to discover that my "donation" would be of great help to others. "We had tried another agency before a distant friend had recommended EDSA, as she herself had been successful with their service, so we contacted Mbali and we could not have been happier. Her pleasant and caring approach is just what we needed after our last experience. The fact that I am now pregnant is just the cherry on the top! Thank you for everything, thank you for making our dream come true."
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