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Fertility preservation is the process of saving eggs, sperm, or other reproductive tissue so that you can use them to conceive in the future. Baystate Reproductive Medicine offers a full range of evaluation and treatment options for women and men who want to preserve their fertility.
Whether you need to delay childbearing for health or personal reasons, our board-certified reproductive specialists will work with you to determine the best way for you to become a parent down the road.
WHEN TO CONSIDER FERTILITY PRESERVATION
You may also want to preserve your fertility for a variety of reasons, ranging from health conditions, career or education goals, or family history of early menopause.
Below are common reasons people consider preserving their eggs or sperm:
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Before cancer treatment: Chemotherapy and radiation can slow or stop sperm production. These treatments may also infertility in women. Fertility preservation techniques can allow you to have children once your treatment is complete.
- Before autoimmune disease treatment: Conditions such as lupus or rheumatoid arthritis may require treatments that affect your fertility.
- Lifestyle: You may also want to preserve your fertility for reasons including career and educational goals, or concerns about your relationship status.
- Family medical history: Women who have a family history of early menopause may decide to preserve their eggs when they are young.
FERTILITY PRESERVATION OPTIONS
At Baystate Health, our caring, supportive staff offers the latest technology and proven fertility expertise. Learn more about the available options including egg freezing, sperm freezing, and embryo freezing.
Egg freezing: Egg freezing is a good option for women up to age 38 who are not ready to have children but would like to have the option in the future. Eggs are frozen at the unfertilized stage. The process involves stimulating your egg production (ovarian stimulation), retrieving the eggs, and then freezing them future use (vitrification). When you are ready to become pregnant, your eggs will be thawed and fertilized with sperm through in vitro fertilization (IVF). Fertilized eggs begin their growth in a lab and are then placed into your uterus.
Sperm freezing: Men choose to freeze their sperm before treatment for a serious disease, such as cancer. With sperm freezing, men have the opportunity to father a child after treatment is complete. Ideally, semen is collected after two to three days of abstinence from ejaculation. Sperm is securely and safely frozen and kept in the Baystate Reprodutive lab.
Embryo freezing: Couples who wish to delay childbearing may consider embryo freezing. First, a woman must undergo ovarian stimulation. Next, eggs are retrieved. Mature eggs are then fertilized with sperm. Embryos are grown to the blastocyst stage (which means eggs with 100 to 200 cells) in the lab, and then frozen and stored. When you are ready for pregnancy, the embryos are thawed and transferred to the uterus.