IVF Cost

Eight days after sending my letter to Sanatorium Helios SIVF in the Czech Republic requesting information on the IVF cost, IVF success rate and IVF procedure I received the reply below.

I have given the approximate US$ values in red. The website for Sanatorium Helios SIVF can be found here.

The success rate appears very high for my age group. Looking on the website I think this is in terms of audible heartbeat within six weeks rather than live births.

1. What is the current success rate for your clinic? (preferably by age as I know that the success rate will be much lower for somebody of my age). 35 percent – per age over 40
2. How many cycles do you perform per year at the clinic? 3 is max, realy depends on patients health, reaction on stimulation etc.
3. What is the maximum age that you treat? own eggs max 45, it is important to come for firsth initial consultation with our M.D, IVF specialist, he need to know your anamnaesis and blood test etc.to seriously decide about stimulation
4. Are there any fertility conditions that you will not treat? No,
5. What is your embryo transfer policy? How many embryos will you replace at one time?  all embryos are check in in sterile lab, we do transfer of 1 or 2 embryos. No more.
6. What is the basic cost of the IVF treatment? 2000,- EURO (approx. US$2,695) for IVF, 1000,- EURO (approx. US$1,350) for PGD
7. What additional costs would / could be incurred? Medicine – 200 -2000,- EURO (approx. US$270 – US$2,695)
   
8. What happens to the costs if the cycle has to be abandoned? Our cost covered medical treatment, blood tests, ultrasounds, consultation with IVF specialist, anaesthesia, oocite pick up,  cultivation of embryos 5-6 days, transfer.  All cost will be used to cover our cost.
   
9. How long would I need to be in Czech Republic for? stimulation 14 days, oocyte pick up and 5-6 days stimulation. total time 21 days.
   
10. Who deals with the logistics of flights and accommodation? You.
11. How is the pre-treatment carried out? Our IVF specialist decide about possibility of stimulation, you will have check-in ultrasound and blood test and after our IVF specialist decide about using medicine.
12. How do I get medication? Buy it here at the firsth initial consultation.
13. How will I be monitored? 3-4 times blood tests, 3 times Ultrasound.
14. How will I know that I am not being under / over stimulated?  Blood test every 3 days.
15. If I have a problem whilst in the UK who would I go to? To you gynaecologist with our medical report
16. Is the clinic registered with any regulatory body? We are registered in Czech republic in register of centres of assisted reproduction, we have special SIVF licence. More information you can see our web pages.

Two weeks after I sent my letter requesting information on the IVF cost, IVF success rate and IVF procedure at Krishna IVF Clinic in India I received the reply below.

Although this clinic will not treat me due to my age they have still replied in full and directly to my questions and there is an informative diagram which was sent to me by Dr. Raju shown after the answers. The IVF cost appears very reasonable given that there are no additions other than flights and accomodation (Dr. Raju has kindly put these into US$ for us).

thank you for mail. we regret for delay in sending the reply.

Considering your age we are not offering the treatment for such age group.

please check the attachment for our response to your questions, treatment plan and new patient form.

regards

Dr. Rama Raju

Director

Krishna IVF Clinic

Z.P. Junction

Visakhapatnam

Andhra Pradesh

India

Phone: 91-891-2538194, 195, 2706164, 2706722.

Fax: 91-891-2706712

E-mail: krishnaivf@hotmail.com

Web: www.krishnaivf.com

1.      What is the current success rate for your clinic?

Clinic Success rates (Clinical Pregnancy Rate) for the period- January 2008 to August 2008: < 30 years: 46.12%, 30-35 years: 37.14 % and > 35 years: 25.0% 

2.      How many cycles do you perform per year at the clinic?

We usually perform 400 cycles per year in our clinic.

3.      What is the maximum age that you treat?

We treat women up to 41/42 years of age.

4.      Are there any fertility conditions that you will not treat?

Oocyte donation and professional surrogacy are not provided at our clinic.

5.      What is your embryo transfer policy? How many embryos will you replace at one time?

We do day 4 compacted embryo transfer, maximum 3 embryos will be transferred for younger age groups, and more than 3 embryos will be transferred for older age group.

6.      What is the basic cost of the IVF treatment?

US $ 3000-3500/- (excluding transport and accommodation)

7.      What additional costs would be/could be incurred?

No additional costs

8.      What happens to the cost if the cycle has to be abandoned?

Cost for the ultrasound services and consultation will be charged and rest of the amount

(that may be upto 100-200$) will be returned if the cycle is abandoned.

9.      How long would I need to be in India for?                                                                                 17 days                                                                                   

10.  Who deals with the logistics of flights and accommodation?

Krishna IVF’S clinical coordinator along with couple who wish to go for IVF treatment at our clinic will jointly deal with these matters (http://krishnaivf.com/category/location/).

11.  How is the pre- treatment carried out?

Couple willing to under go IVF treatment is advised to attend our clinic for preliminary investigations during 18^th to 21^st day of their cycle. Couple needs to plan for 2 days stay (http://krishnaivf.com/category/ivf-process/).

            Investigations like

1)      Basic preliminary blood investigations needed for IVF treatment.

2)      Ultrasound scanning for the woman to check uterus and ovaries are done.

Sperm freezing and counseling are carried out at the same sitting, after preliminary investigation down regulation injection (Decapeptyl) is given.

            2 weeks later woman is asked to come to the clinic to check E2 and LH hormone levels. If levels are satisfactory stimulation for ovulation will be started. Woman need to plan for 17 days stay for stimulation, Oocyte recovery and embryo transfer. Rarely she may need to stay further 2 more weeks if she develops hyper stimulation.

12.  How do I get medication?

13.  How will I be monitored?

14.  How will I know that I am not being under/over stimulated?

15.  If I have a problem while in the U.K who would I go to?

            For Q nos. 12, 13, 14 & 15

We prefer stimulation and monitoring under one roof (i.e at our clinic).

            During stimulation with hormonal injections woman is monitored by transvaginal ultrasonography and blood hormone levels regularly to see the progressive growth of the follicles. Woman is also prevented from under/over stimulation by this.  

16.  Is the clinic registered with any regulatory body?

We are registered with the Indian Society for Assisted Reproduction (ISAR) and ESHRE PGD Consortium (European society of human reproduction Pre implantation genetic diagnosis) (Center code: “103”).

I received a reply to my letter requesting information on the IVF cost, IVF success rate and IVF procedure from Mitera Hospital in Greece withing three days.

If you check out the Mitera Hospital website they have educational evenings where they will explain IVF and the procedures that are available – a great idea I thought. It is also worth looking at the kosmogonia site, there are some YouTube videos there showing the IVF process at the hospital as well as some very good information.

I have added the approximate US$ costs in red, these exclude the cost of medication. The success rate at 19% for my age group seems very good.

Thank you for your email addressed to kosmogonia website.

We operate in the largest Maternity Hospital in Athens offering a complete service for fertility treatment.
Our team of specialists (many of which have trained in the UK) offer the latest treatment in a spacious, purpose built IVF unit.

Our official website is www.mitera.gr but I have a personal website www.kosmogonia.gr and blog which aims to inform patients on the latest developments in IVF.

Giles Palmer
Director,
Senior Embryologist
Mitera IVF

The answers to your question are below:

1.      What is the current success rate for your clinic? (preferably by age as I know that the success rate will be much lower for somebody of my age) Our overall Clinical success rate for all ages is 32%. For Ages 40-44 : 19%
2.      How many cycles do you perform per year at the clinic? The numbers of egg pick ups for 2006-2007 was 1094. We perform also over 1500 IUI per year.
3.      What is the maximum age that you treat? The maximum age allowed by Greek regulation is 49.
4.      Are there any fertility conditions that you will not treat? We treat a wide range fertility conditions, the only exclusion being HIV positive patients which is under review by the National Authority for Human Reproduction.
5.      What is your embryo transfer policy? How many embryos will you replace at one time? The maximum number of embryo transferrable to a women under 40 yrs is 3, over 40 years of age the maximum is 4.
6.      What is the basic cost of the IVF treatment? We operate in a private health care hospital, a team of gynaecologists coordinates the IVF protocols. It depends on the clinician treating the patient, but approximately the cost of a complete IVF cycle is 3000 euros. (approx. US$4,125)
7.      What additional costs would / could be incurred? The cost of the initial consultation, which is 250 euros. (approx. US$345)
8.      What happens to the costs if the cycle has to be abandoned?
The cost will depend on the stage at which the cycle is cancelled.
9.      How long would I need to be in Greece for?
For at least 7 days.
10.     Who deals with the logistics of flights and accommodation? The patient.
11.     How is the pre-treatment carried out? The pre-treatment requirements depends on the individual circumstances. The ability to coordinate with the referring doctor, the ability and cost to travel to Athens for the preliminary stages, and the health care support in the residing country.
12.     How do I get medication? From the patient’s health insurance.
13.     How will I be monitored? 14.     How will I know that I am not being under / over stimulated? The ovarian follicular response will be monitored by ultrasound and serum estadiol in order to avoid over/under stimulation.
15.     If I have a problem whilst in the UK who would I go to? Your General practitioner.
16.     Is the clinic registered with any regulatory body
Yes, with the Greek Authority on Human Reproduction.

Congratulations and good luck with your IVF COST WEBSITE!

I received the following reply to my letter requesting the IVF cost, IVF success rate and IVF procedure from Embryogenisis in Greece five days after sending.

The reply contains some very good information, the clinic certainly seems to be a big one performing around 2000 stimulated cycles a year and yet the reply comes from a founder and embryologist – I like that, it shows a real personal touch. I also like it when I am told not to hesitate in contacting them for further information rather than just being directed to a website – again it’s personal.

The website, in English, can be found here. The email address is INFO@EMBRYOGENESIS.GR. I have added the US$ approximations in red.

This is another one for my IVF shortlist although the basic IVF cost does not include drugs.

Sorry for the delay in replying, but the list of questions was endless, but I agree relevant. I will try to cover them as best as I can.
 
Our clinic has been open here in athens for 17 years. Dr Mastrominas and myself met when we were working at Hammersmith Hospital IVF with Prof. Robert Winston.
We perform approximately 2000 stimulated cycles per year, approx 1000 natural cycle IVF, and now for the last year an increasing demand for minimal stimulation IVF. In september 2008 we held a symposium here in athens on minimal stimulation and oocyte/embryo vitrification with teams from around the world (specifically japan & USA) which have helped us to refine the protocols with excellent results.
 
The clinic has a mean patient age of 38,5 years, the overall success for stimulated treatment is 48%, most patients have frozen embryos for subsequent attempt, & success rates start to tail off at 40 yrs. The over 40s do well if they respond to the drug regimes and there are not multiple infertility factors involved, the 40-44 yr old group are at present approx 20% successful although many of this group opt for natural cycle IVF and collct 2-3 embryos for transfer. We treat patients according to greek law up to 46 years of age. There are no specific infertility problems we do not treat, in fact we have the largest PGD & PGS programme here in greece and therefore treat for translocations and other genetic disorders which may or may not be infertile related.
 
The law in greece for IVF is one of the most liberal here in europe, and allows us to transfer 3 or more embryos to the over 40s. The patients under 35 are limited to 2 embryos for transfer. The number replaced will be discussed with the patient. Here in greece patients want twin pregnancies to finish with IVF once and for all, and doctors class twin pregnancies no more difficult than singletons. However here they have close and continuous relationship with the patient. In northern europe the feeling is to avoid twin pregnancies, therefore we discuss in detail the patients needs and desires.
 
The basic cost of stimulated cycle IVF is 3000 euros (approx. US$4,125), with ICSI 3500 (approx. US$4,815) euros, vitrification 300 euros (approx. US$415) + 50 euro (approx. US$70) per oocyte / embryo. Costs involve all consultations, scans, hormones, and procedures. They do not include drugs, and any investigations which are not part of treatment. If cycle is abandoned, costs incurred until cancellation are minimal.
 
Normally treatment for people in remote ares of greece or from other countries is coordinated through a local doctor who has experience of stimulation protocols. We have many years of experience in controlling cycles remotely, however we do demand that all scans and estradiol measurements are sent directly to us & decisions of treatment are made from here. We regularly have patients from Italy and balkan countries which follow this regime without problems. Prescriptions can be arranged from us for drugs, however in some cases drugs are not always available in same form in all countries, and sometimes we need to find alternatives. The length of time required here in greece can be reduced to approx 5-7 days if we can control the initial stage of treatment remotely. Accommodation we can suggest and maybe confirm, but do not usually become more involved. 
 
If there are complications in the UK we have a network of people throughout the country who could be of help. We are constantly in contact with IVF at Hammersmith Hospital. We have excellent relations with Kings College in london, and also, with Leeds, Liverpool, & Birmingham IVF programmes
 
The clinics here in greece are under the regulation of the greek national authorities, but as yet do not have a comprehensive monitoring system. We have undertaken ourselves to obtain ISO 9001, we regularly invite regulators fro UK to come and advise us, we take part in all european quality control programmes, and I am registered as senior clinical embryologist with ESHRE, who is now trying to set up a pan european regulatory body for accreditation. 
 
I hope this information is of some use, any more details required do not hesitate to contact me.
 
Dr Stephen Davies, Scientific Director/ Embryologist.
Embryogenesis IVF centre.
Athens, Greece  15123.
 
Tel. +30 210 6104682, Fax +30 210 6104688

I received an acknowledgement to my letter requesting information on the IVF cost, IVF success rate and IVF procedure from Human Assisted Reproduction Ireland (HARI) the same day that I sent it, and the reply below on the following day. As can be seen this clinic is aimed at those resident in Ireland, however, if you are one of those then, although I do not have the costs her you can check their website here where you will find a full list of their charges.

Thank you for your email.  I think the best way to answer your questions is
to say that the HARI Unit is really set up to provide treatment services for
people domiciled in Ireland.  We do not have any agreements with clinics in
the UK or elsewhere to monitor, provide prescriptions or deal with problems
our clients may encounter. Sorry we can’t help you further but I am sure
HFEA can provide you with the information you need on clinics in the UK.

Kind regards

Marie-Louise

When I sent my letter requesting the IVF cost, IVF success rates and IVF procedure at IVFHK – ART Unit in Hong Kong I received an acknowledgement the next day and the full reply shown below nine days later.

I have added the costs in US$ in red. My questions have all been addressed directly and the basic cost does include the standard drug package. Their website can be found here and has some good information on it.

Thanks for your e-mail. Hope the following information could help you.
1.      What is the current success rate for your clinic? (preferably by age
as I know that the success rate will be much lower for somebody of my age)
The pregnancy rate after IVF is about 30% per cycle with a cumulative success
rate of 60% after 3-6 treatment cycles. The success rate is subject to variable
factors and reduces significantly with increasing female age.
2.      How many cycles do you perform per year at the clinic?
Not figure could be provided here.
3.      What is the maximum age that you treat?
No Limitation. However, patients have to consult doctor before the treatment
starts.
4.      Are there any fertility conditions that you will not treat?
Please consult your doctor.
5.      What is your embryo transfer policy? How many embryos will you replace
at one time?
Usually 2 embryos at one time.
6.      What is the basic cost of the IVF treatment?
HK$40,000-HK$50,000 (approx. US$5,155 – US$6,445)
7.      What additional costs would / could be incurred?
The cost (HK$40,000-50,000) only includes the standard drug package.  If you
wish to use expensive drugs like Gonal F, Puregon or Luveris etc, you are
required to pay for the differences in cost between these drugs and the usual
drugs we use for your stimulation. Also, HK$1,000 (approx. US$130) will be charged for first
doctor consultation.
8.      What happens to the costs if the cycle has to be abandoned?
The cost will be paid by interval but the cost of drug package could not be
refunded once the treatment starts.
9.      How long would I need to be in Hong Kong for?
The couple have to come to HK for one visit to get first consultation from
doctor and set everything up. This should only take one day.
For IVF treatment cycle, we would need to have the wife here for around two
weeks and the husband would be welcome all this time but only really needed on
the day of egg collection.
10.     Who deals with the logistics of flights and accommodation?
Patients should arrange their own flights and accommodation but our staff are
happy to assist for reservation of the nearby hotels.
11.     How is the pre-treatment carried out?
Inform our nurses on (852) 2632 3148 when your period comes. The nurses will
call you back to arrange for a blood test on period day 2/3 and give you the
date to come for the IVF talk, treatment explanation and counseling and signing
of consent forms.
12.     How do I get medication?
You will take the oral contraceptive pills and use the nasal spray as
instructed. Then, you have to come to our unit for blood-taking and ultrasound.
If your ultrasound result is normal, you will begin the injections to stimulate
the eggs to grow. The injections are needed every day. You could also choose to
do the injections at our clinic or by auto-injection. Usually 10-14 days of
injections are needed before eggs are ready to be collected.
13.     How will I be monitored?
14.     How will I know that I am not being under / over stimulated?
Q13-14
You will have ultrasound and blood tests to check on satisfactory response of
the ovaries to the medication.
15.     If I have a problem whilst in the UK who would I go to?
If you have any general enquiries, please feel free to contact us on (852) 2632
1455 or via e-mail: ivfhk@med.cuhk.edu.hk For appointment booking, please call
Ms June Cheung on (852) 2632 2810 or via e-mail: junecheung@cuhk.edu.hk. If you
have any questions about medication, please contact our nurses on (852) 2632
3148.
16.     Is the clinic registered with any regulatory body?
Under the new law in Hong Kong, all service providers should be pursuant to the
license granted by the Council on Human Reproductive Technology. Besides, our
unit were awarded ISO 9001:2000 certification on 28 June 2005, and we are the
first standalone Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) / IVF Unit in Hong Kong
or China to have been so certified.

If you require any furtherinformation, please visit our website: www.ivfhk.com

Assisted Reproductive Technology Unit (IVFHK)
The Chinese University of Hong Kong /
The Prince of Wales Hospital

The same day that I sent my letter requesting information on IVF cost, IVF success rates and the IVF procedure to Serum Biomedical Institute in Greece I received the reply below.

The web site for the Serum Biomedical Institute is here, although it does not have a lot of information on it you can get an overview of the clinic.

Penny Ampatzi has answered my questions directly, which I always like, and has given some good information. I have added the US$ cost in red. It is worth noting that there is no medication included in the basic IVF cost of approximately US$4,115.

1. What is the current success rate for your clinic? (preferably by age as I know that the success rate will be much lower for somebody of my age)  age group 43-44  is 7%  
2. How many cycles do you perform per year at the clinic?   500-700
3. What is the maximum age that you treat? as per our law ,up to 50 years old  (of course most of the treatments in age group 45-50 are egg donation treatments) 
4. Are there any fertility conditions that you will not treat? no
5. What is your embryo transfer policy? How many embryos will you replace at one time? for ages less than 40, we replace up 3 embryos, over 40 years old up to 4 embryos
6. What is the basic cost of the IVF treatment? 3000 euros (approx. US$4,115)
7. What additional costs would / could be incurred? the cost of medication, this depents on the case.
8. What happens to the costs if the cycle has to be abandoned? if abandoned before oocyte retriaval , there will be no  charge.If aborndoned after retriaval but because of the quality of the egg we advice not to try fertilization ,it will be a charge of 600 euros (approx US$825). If abandoned before ET , it will be 1500 euros (approx. US$2,060).  
9. How long would I need to be in Greece for? for around 15 days
10. Who deals with the logistics of flights and accommodation? for flights yourself, for accomondation we can arrange from our end or give you recomendations.
11. How is the pre-treatment carried out? we need you to come for a visit before starting. During this visit we go through all your fertility history ,give you a scan and we explain the options for you.This is free, but if you need any aditional test, you need to pay for it 
12. How do I get medication? you either buy it from a local pharmacy or we buy them for you
13. How will I be monitored? by varginal scans and eostrogen testing
14. How will I know that I am not being under / over stimulated? thats why we need to see you before treatment .Over stimulation is not so possible because of your age, understimulation is quite often, sometimes we suggest natural cycle ivf if we feel that stimulation will not be enough 
15. If I have a problem whilst in the UK who would I go to? your own gynecologist has to take care of your pregnacy.we don’t have a satelite clinic in uk
16. Is the clinic registered with any regulatory body? as per any IVF clinic in Greece ,we are registered to our national IVF comitee

best wishes
penny Ampatzi

The same day that I emailed my letter requesting information on the IVF cost, IVF success rate and IVF procedure to My IVF Alternative in the Czech Republic I receved the reply below.

If you look at their website there is a lot of detailed cost information and they certainly seem happy to help with a lot of the logistics. The website also gives an indication of the costs in US$. With a total IVF cycle cost, including medication, estimated at US$4,250 and a complete vacation package for two at US$5,860 plus flights this seems to be a good deal. Their email is info@myivfalternative.com. One for my IVF shortlist I think!

thank you for your interest in our program.
If you go through our website: www.myivfalternative.com, you’ll be able to find a lot if detailed information about the treatment program in Czech, but in the mean time, here are answers to your specific questions:
1. What is the current success rate for your clinic? (preferably by age

  as I know that the success rate will be much lower for somebody of my age)

THE SUCCESS RATE FOR USING YOUR OWN EGGS IS 55% FOR WOMEN UP TO THE AGE OF 38 AND 67% WHEN USING DONOR EGGS

  2. How many cycles do you perform per year at the clinic? WE DO OVER 80 CYCLES A MONTH
  3. What is the maximum age that you treat? 55
  4. Are there any fertility conditions that you will not treat? WE ARE TRYING TO TREAT ALL INFERTILITY CONDITIONS
  5. What is your embryo transfer policy? How many embryos will you replace
  at one time? THERE IS NO LAW THAT WOULD RESTRICT YOU TO A CERTAIN NUMBER, IT IS VERY INDIVIDUAL DEPENDING ON THE PATIENT’S AGE, QUALITY OF EMBRYOS ETC. BUT USUALLY IT IS 1-3
  6. What is the basic cost of the IVF treatment? YOU CAN SEE THAT ON OUR WEBSITE UNDER TREATMENT COST
  7. What additional costs would / could be incurred? TRANSPORTATION TO AND FROM BRNO (EASY WITH RYAN AIR FROM LONDON)    8. What happens to the costs if the cycle has to be abandoned? TREATMENT GUARANTEE FOR EGG DONATION ATTACHED. FOR USING YOUR OWN EGGS – YOU JUST PAY FOR SERVICES THAT YOU HAVE RENDERED.
  9. How long would I need to be in Czech Republic for? 14 DAYS FOR USING YOUR OWN EGGS AND 7 DAYS FOR USING DONOR EGGS, 3 DAYS FOR DONOR EMBRYOS
  10. Who deals with the logistics of flights and accommodation? WE HELP YOU ARRANGE FOR THOSE BASED ON YOUR PREFERENCE.
  11. How is the pre-treatment carried out? YOU WILL GET A LIST OF TESTS THAT NEED TO BE DONE AND YOU EITHER ARRANGE FOR THEM WITH YOUR DOCTOR OR IF IT IS BETTER FOR YOU TO COMPLETE THEM IN CZECH, YOU WOULD HAVE TO COME TO CZECH ONE MORE TIME.
  12. How do I get medication? WILL BE MAILED TO YOU OR YOU CAN GET THEM FROM YOUR LOCAL DOCTOR
  13. How will I be monitored? BY YOUR DOCTOR OR YOU WOULD HAVE TO BE IN CZECH LONGER TO DO IT THERE.
  14. How will I know that I am not being under / over stimulated? AT YOUR FIRST VISIT IN CZECH
  15. If I have a problem whilst in the UK who would I go to? YOUR OB/GYN
  16. Is the clinic registered with any regulatory body? THEY MEET ALL THE REQUIREMENTS SET BY CZECH GOVERNMENT AND THEY EXCEED THEM BY HAVING COMPLETED ISO CERTIFICATION.

Hope the answers help
Best regards,
Mag

The same day as I sent my letter requesting information on the IVF cost, IVF success rate and IVF procedure to the Center for Human Reproduction “Dimitrov” in Bulgaria I received the reply below.

The price seems pretty good considering it includes all the medication. It does, however require a fairly lengthy stay in Bulgaria of 30 days. The website is www.invitr.bg but unfortunately it is not in English.

Thank you for your interest in our clinic. First I want to tell you that we are a little IVF centre, not situated in a hospital.
Secondly, I tried to answear all the questions in your e-mail in short:
1. 1 patient (with no donor oocytes).
2. 130-150 cycles per year.
3. We offer donor oocytes to women over 42 years of age, but there is no problem whatsoever to try with your own oocytes (if you respond to the stimulation)
4. Yes, there are. According to the medical standarts.
5. Depending on the age of the patient and the quality of the embryos (in your case – probably all of them).
6. Approximately 3000 euro, (approx. US$4,080) including the medications (without donor oocytes).
7. Everything considering your accommodation in Sofia – transport, hotel prices etc.
8. You pay for the treatment, you have been subjected to – for example if your ovaries do not respond to the stimulation, you are obliged to pay only for the medications you have used so far and the examinations, but not for the IVF procedure itself.
9. Approximately 30 days.
10. Unfortunately, we are not able to provide you any help with this matter.
11. I am not sure I understand your question, please be more specific.
12. The price we give you (app. 3000 euro) includes the medications. If you have the possibility to obtain your own, there will be no problems, but you have to consult a doctor first.
13. Epicrisis, ultrasound examinations, hormone levels measurement, spermogramme.
14. You will be monitored personally by the doctor.
15. London Women’s Clinic, dr. Matey Andonov.
16. Yes, it is legal requirement.

Best regards
Plamen Todorov, PhD
Senior Clinical Embryologist

To save you having to jump between my letter and the answers these are the questions I asked:

1. What is the current success rate for your clinic? (preferably by age as I know that the success rate will be much lower for somebody of my age)
2. How many cycles do you perform per year at the clinic?
3. What is the maximum age that you treat?
4. Are there any fertility conditions that you will not treat?
5. What is your embryo transfer policy? How many embryos will you replace at one time?
6. What is the basic cost of the IVF treatment?
7. What additional costs would / could be incurred?
8. What happens to the costs if the cycle has to be abandoned?
   
9. How long would I need to be in ________ for?
   
10. Who deals with the logistics of flights and accommodation?
11. How is the pre-treatment carried out?
12. How do I get medication?
13. How will I be monitored?
14. How will I know that I am not being under / over stimulated?
15. If I have a problem whilst in the UK who would I go to?
16. Is the clinic registered with any regulatory body?

Having spent time on the telephone today to a clinic in Ireland who were stressing to me, as numerous other clinics seem to be doing, that the likelihood of me becoming pregnant with my own eggs is very slim due to my age, it is looking more and more likely (although I must admit that at the moment I am in total denial!) that I will need to go the egg donation route.

Although I am not ready to give up on being able to use my own eggs (as I told you – total denial!) my attention was brought to a very informative site, Infertility Answers. They state that they specialise in surrogacy and egg donation, however the information on the site is relevant to all of us. I found the list of tests that are done for both male and female infertility interesting – at last I can put some names to the tests I have had!! (Is there anybody else out there like me who does not remember what everything is called?)

It’s worth checking the site out, there’s lots of good information there.

Sue