After going through rounds of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and successfully expanding their family using the "one embryo, one kid" strategy, couples may be left with more embryos than they need. When something like this occurs, the chance to assist another family presents itself. The couple can donate their spare stored embryos to patients who have an intense desire to begin their own families through the process known as embryo donation.

If you've already established the family you wanted and you're certain that you do not want any more children, fertility facilities like Embryo Solution can guide you through the adopt a embryo essential decisions you need to make regarding your remaining embryos.

How Donating Embryos Can Change Lives

There are couples who are no longer in a position to benefit from pursuing additional fertility treatments that involve using their own sperm and eggs in the procedure. It is possible for the mental and emotional stress, the expensive cost of fertility procedures, and the anxiety of having another unsuccessful pregnancy attempt to become too much. The utilization of donor eggs is frequently beneficial for most patients. Using donor eggs in conjunction with IVF will typically give patients the best chance of conceiving a child; nevertheless, using donor eggs can be quite pricey. Donated embryos provide patients an alternative to using donor eggs or adopting a more cost-effective child with a higher chance of success. 

The Embryo Adoption Process

When one couple decides to donate their healthy, viable embryos to another couple or an individual having difficulty starting a family on their own, this marks the beginning of embryo adoption. Parents who are done having children through IVF and still have embryos in frozen storage after the donor embryo adoption process are eligible to become embryo donors. They can choose to reject these embryos, donate them for medical or scientific research, give them to another individual or couple interested in embryo adoption, or keep them frozen in storage. Those who opt to give embryos will then be paired with prospective adoptive parents through a fertility clinic or embryo adoption agency.

Through embryo adoption, still-developing embryos are placed into the uterus of a woman who is not their biological mother and with whom they do not share any genetic material. The child who is eventually born may not share any DNA with the mother who carried them when she was pregnant, even if the pregnancy does occur and continues normally.

Some considerations include the following:

Choosing the right embryos

The recipient mother or spouse will select an embryo donor, who may be known to them or remain anonymous, based on various parameters. These factors may include the recipient's physical traits, ethnicity, family history, age, reproductive history, or other factors.

Medical Records

It is necessary to conduct a thorough medical examination on the woman who is planning to become pregnant in order to determine not only whether or not her uterus is capable of supporting a pregnancy but also whether or not she has any other health conditions that might be detrimental to the pregnancy. Tests will also be performed on the potential mother to determine how her body will react to the medications required to prepare her for pregnancy. These are similar to the drugs administered throughout the frozen embryo transfer and egg donation processes.

Counseling for mental health issues and other relevant emotional concerns should also be sought for the donor and the recipient of the organ donation.

Legal considerations

The couple donating the embryos must sign legal documentation confirming their desire and making it clear that the intended parents will be the guardians of the child born from the procedure. The prospective parents have the right to ask the couple donating the embryo for a comprehensive family history. The ivf embryo adoption couple donating has the option of dictating what happens to any donated embryo(s) that the recipient's parents do not use in the event they do not use all of them.

During this process, it is critical to have competent legal representation on your side.

Eliminating Safety Risks Involved

Donors are screened for infectious diseases, and each donor's medical history records are stored in the database. The health histories in these cycles are typically not as extensive as those in donor egg cycles. Before a transfer of embryos takes place, the recipients will often be notified of any serious medical concerns or genetic illnesses that are known to exist. In the case of anonymous donations, recipients typically receive only a summary of the donors; in the case of available donations, however, recipients may have the opportunity to meet the donors and form friendships with them. Of course, there is no way to embryo donation adoption eliminate the possibility of children being born with congenital disabilities.

The Bottom Line

Everyone has a unique conception of what "life" means. The opportunity to lead one's own life can be gained through embryo adoption. There is an opportunity for couples who desire to have kids to make a difference in that child's life, but there are no guarantees, just like with any other pregnancy. The unused embryos of other families may still take the form of a life that brings hope to those who dream of having children.