# European Sperm Bank?



## Gratitude

Hi all,

I had my first consultation at Homerton this week and was advised to contact the European Sperm bank to get a donor. Has anyone used there service before and how do you rate it? How many IUI does one need to order? 

Thanks for any advise!


----------



## ♥JJ1♥

How did it go? Some of the girls Suitcase etc on the single girls thread have applied for donor sperm through them
L x


----------



## lesbo_mum

We also looked at them as the wessex said we could import from them but im not sure about any details etc but would be interesting to see what the others say.

Em x


----------



## Misspie

Hi ladies, 

Have been reading the threads but not had chance to post since last week. 

We are in contact with a clinic called Diers Klinik in Denmark and have chosen our sperm donor already through this website, and have signed upto their 3mth trial with unlimited access where you can download all info about the donor, personality test, medical history on family and them, get a baby photo of the donor and a voice interview in english. 

Diers Klinik have all the donor through the Cryo bank which are cheaper than ESB, but they are still linked to each other!!!!  But cannot get the informaiton from Cryo bank as ESB. We are hoping to go through the Klinik rather than geting the sperm through ESB and sending to a UK clinic as its much more expensive and they only ship certain sperm donors to the UK.

I'm struggling at the moment with AF, ovulation and hormones etc, so still hoping to go through IUI in Denmark but I know I still have this option through ESB if I need to import sperm due to the lacking donors in the UK.

Send me a PM if your interested in any particular donor and I'll see what I can do for you   

(May as well make use of the Euro 100 I've already spent and share it with you guys on here!!!)

If you want anymore info, just ask away

Lorna
xxxx


----------



## emnjo

Hiya

We imported our sperm from ESB, and found them to be excellent. There is loads of information on the donors aswell. I would recommend them. 

We bought 8 vials, and have used 4 of them already. I would probably have ordered 10 if I had known!

You should buy the ICSI vials, they are cheaper becuase they han't been washed already. The Homerton will wash it for free for you. You sohave to pay £1, 000 for a pregnancy slot though. Good luck


----------



## Misspie

Hi Emnjo, 

How did you screen your donors on the ESB? Was there anything particular you looked for in a donor?

Do you know if many clinics in the Uk will wash the ICSI vials for free? Not including the additional fees 

Its interesting to hear other peoples thoughts and processes etc.

L
xx


----------



## lesbo_mum

Hiya

i've been fiddling around with this site this morning and 10 units would cost me £2500 with shipping... how many units do you think would be needed?? 

Em x


----------



## Misspie

Hi Em, 

I'm too interested how many vials one should be buying!!! Can anyone help on what they have previously purchased? And if you shipped in the cost your UK clinic charged to store them and for how long usually?

Did you compare that on the IUI/ICI vials?

L
xx


----------



## lesbo_mum

i looked at iui vials... but to be honest im totally clueless to this importing sperm malarky


----------



## Misspie

I wonder if many other clinics would do the washing of the vials and would mean you could buy the cheaper option the ICI ones.......all things to take into account!

L xx


----------



## lesbo_mum

i think i may email the wessex and ask


----------



## suitcase of dreams

re how many vials to purchase - guess it depends how optimistic you are  

I'm doing IVF and you use one vial per cycle. I ordered 3....

I'm having tx abroad though, so no £1000 pregnancy slot fee - if you have to pay this, I'd order more than you think you need, you can always save the rest for siblings!

Best of luck,
Suitcase
x

PS overall I found ESB very efficient and would not hesitate to recommend them


----------



## dyketastic

Hey

We've bought our sperm from the ESB and our swimmers arrived at the Homerton a few weeks ago    

ESB where doing get 1 vial free for every six bought.  So we ordered 8 and recieved 9, we worked this out on 6 IUI's and 3 IVF's although hoping we will fall pregnant asap and may have some sibling sperm left.     Dont forget to add the £1000 for the pregnancy slot too

Pham, did you manage to get any funding out of your PCT?

D x


----------



## lesbo_mum

whats this about a £1000 for a pregnancy slot   who do we pay that to


----------



## suitcase of dreams

If you are having tx in the UK, then you have to pay ESB £1000 for a pregnancy slot - this is to ensure they put a limit on the number of live births that donor has. This is to comply with HFEA regulations in the UK which state that any one donor can only have 10 live births (siblings are allowed on top of this, so if your donor has had 10 live births including one which is yours, you can use the same donor for a sibling, taking his total to 11+)

Any sperm imported to the UK has to comply with these HFEA regulations - ie be ID release and donor not over the 10 live births limit

Hope this makes sense - if you look at the fees page on ESB website I think it gives some further info on this

Doesn't apply to me as I'm having tx in Czech Republic and importing my sperm there but I did look into it for UK as well and pretty sure I have my facts right  

Suitcase
x


----------



## lesbo_mum

Bloody hell!! i didnt know that grrr... 

Ok so if we say bought 5 vials and paid this £1000 pregnancy slot and used our 5 vials and needed to order some more do you think we could use the same donor   and also would we have to pay the £1000 again if we could use the same donor 

I've had a look as the ESB's fee's page and it doesnt give you the cost of the extra fee it just tells you to email them and when you go to order the vials it doesnt mention it and would let me process my card payment i think..


----------



## suitcase of dreams

Hi,

Not sure if you'd have to pay twice if you use same donor - best to email ESB and check - they're very efficient and usually reply to emails within a day or two. Of course there is no guarantee the same donor would still be available so that might be a hitch...

Re letting you pay with your credit card without the £1000 - pretty sure they would not ship to UK until fee paid - they are very aware of HFEA regulations and are unlikely to let it ship without the additional cash. 

It is a shame, but unfortunately those are the UK rules...bumps the cost up quite a bit doesn't it...

Suitcase
x


----------



## lesbo_mum

Hi

thanks for your reply...

it is a bummer but if we want to use our local clinic then we would have to wait about 2 yrs for sperm so this really is our only option and it will still work out a bit cheaper than the LWC plus we hopefully would have some sperm left for a sibling should we want one.

I think i'll email ESB and see what they say... i've also emailed the Wessex to see about storage and washing etc

Em x


----------



## Misspie

Hi All,

Thanks for the extra info, I didn't realise about the extra £1000........how quickly these numebrs just roll into 1. An extra nought to be added on here and there, they do it as if we wouldn't notice the difference!! lol

Em, am keen to hear what ESB say about the extra £1000 shipping fee if you ordered again from the same donor. 

Wonder if they would still do the "BOGOFF" offer? (well it's nearly that isn't it  )

We downloaded all the donor info available last night for shippers to the UK, which is great fun!!

I'm looking for a donor that doesn't relate to the same medical history as me/immediate family members....trying to rule as much out as possible!

The one we have chosen if we go through Denmark isn't on the UK shippers list! Which I'm not sure is good or bad!? Hmmmm

L
xx


----------



## suitcase of dreams

Misspie,

If you are having tx in the UK you will have to have a UK compliant donor - ESB will not ship to the UK if the donor is not on the list - sorry if this is bad news for you...

Suitcase
x


----------



## Misspie

Hi Suitcase, 

Yeah I know - but we are initially looking at doing IUI in Denmark so don't need to choose a UK compliant donor. But the one we have chosen to be used with our clinic in Denmark isn't UK compliant, hence why I'm not sure if this is a good or bad thing.

But just incase we have to come to UK for IVF due to my up the spout AF's and Ovulation at mo......we will have to re-choose!!

Watch this space - all depends on blood results.....then I can push for an ultrasound or HSG - If not I may go private to make sure things are good!

 All fun!

L
x


----------



## lesbo_mum

Hiya

i have just got a email back from the ESB they were very quick... i cant use the donor i liked as he is not a open donor... boo!!!

Hi Emma

We have on numerous occations sent sperm to clinics in the UK.

For your reference I have attached a list of open donors with available pregnancy slots in the UK and extra units for sale.

If you wish to import sperm from a donor who is not registered with the HFEA, this can be arranged between your UK clinic and European Sperm Bank. The time from registration of a donor with the HFEA to delivery is far shorter now than it was earlier.

We monitor very carefully how many pregnancies each donor has in the UK. This is why you in addition to the donor sperm must purchase a "Pregnancy Slot", which gives you the right to using a donor for creating your child. In addition you can create as many full siblings as you wish under the same "Pregnancy Slot" (i.e. you only need to purchase 1 Pregnancy Slot if you as nearly all clients do use the same donor for future siblings).

Prices are quoted in Euros because the value of Pound Sterling is in constant fluctuation:

Shipping is €300 per shipment - this includes the return of our special tank, packing and administration.

Sperm: €350 per unit of IUI-ready sperm from an open donor.

€275 per unit of ICI sperm from an open donor.

The price for the Pregnancy Slot is £1000/€1050 - which is a once off payment as long as you do not change donor.

If you have more questions, I'll be happy to assist.

Regards

Janne

Janne Alstrup

Client Services Manager

European Sperm Bank ApS

Falkoner Allé 63, 2 floor


----------



## mintyfaglady

Got to say that pregnancy slot thing is a stinger! 

We changed donors (UK donors) 2 or 3 times during the course of our treatment. I guess if things work out and you get pg quickly, then it's ok, but if you're a few tries down the line, doctors often suggest changing donor, and then you'd have to fork out another £1000!! 

Why does it all have to be so damned expensive?!?


----------



## lesbo_mum

i know the cost is insane i was talking to a friend at work today about it and she nearly choked on her lunch when i told her the cost.... she said "good god its not bloody gold most blokes waste there spunk on a weekend"


----------



## rosypie

gosh, i'm shocked that you would have to fork out for another pregnancy slot if you didn't fall pregnant and needed to change donors. especially since loads of places recommend a change of donor if you don't click after a couple or so 'goes'... or at least they used to recommend that anyway. frankly i'm appalled at the expense of anything and everything relating to getting pregnant these days...


----------



## lesbo_mum

I know just when you think your getting your head around the cost another hidden cost crops up and kicks you from behind


----------



## dyketastic

The £1000 came as a bit of a shock to us too.  Janne from ESB is really helpful and its handy to ask if the donor is still active or they how many extra vials they have in quarantine aswell, especially if you think you may want sibling sperm

D


----------



## Gratitude

I'm having my screening covered by my pct and will have to pay approx 400GBP for the IUI insemination.
I'm looking for a donor from an Asian descent but not having much luck. Those who recieved treatment abroad, did you have to take many trips?


----------



## lesbo_mum

thats what we are toying with at the moment about sibling sperm.... i had looked at importing sperm when we first thought about ttc but it looked so confusing lol im getting to grips with it a bit more now!!

Im waiting on the wessex coming back about storage and washing but do you know much about storage at the ESB  Do you know if the storage prices are per vial or per person so to speak....

1 year storage of purchased donor semen units
€125

2 years storage of purchased donor semen units
€225

3 years storage of purchased donor semen units
€275

4 years storage of purchased donor semen units
€344

5 years storage of purchased donor semen units
€400

10 years storage of purchased donor semen units
€688


----------



## dyketastic

I think its about £100 per year at the Homerton


----------



## lesbo_mum

thats good how much is IUI as the homerton?


----------



## Damelottie

Shocking costs - it was that extra £1000 that priced me out of the ESB. I'd have loved to use it but not possible for me.


----------



## dyketastic

Its £400 at the moment, hoping it doesnt go up on 1st April. If you do medicated the drugs cost more but they are happy to do a letter for your GP if your GP is happy to give you them on prescription

Details of prices

http://www.homerton.nhs.uk/clinical/11619558242956.html

D x

/links


----------



## lesbo_mum

interesting thanks....


----------



## Misspie

Its interesting to know about all the different costs associated with this. 

All my holidays are out the window this year!! LOL

Well except the one I've just paid for - here we come Mexico in May!!! Wooohooo 5 Star luxury all the way baby!!!

(hopefully our last one just us too)


----------



## Candee

Hi,
Sorry to bust in on your thread, I hope you don't mind, but can anyone tell me whether 
they let you see photos of the donor if you use the ESB?
I have been considering using a donor from the US, so that I can get lots of details, 
but the prices really are shocking!  
Thanks
Candee


----------



## Misspie

Hi Jandee, 

Your not butting in at all. They offer a picture of the donor as a baby, majority of donors seem to have them, but there are the odd few who don't offer one.....

You get lots of details too, a personality test, a staff impression, an audio interview in english and a extended profile, with questions about the donor, likes/dislikes etc and medical history on them and their immediate family from siblings to uncles and aunts!!!

I believe ESB are connected to a US sperm bank, which is all part of the cryobank, is this the one you are considering using?

L
xx


----------



## Candee

Hi Misspie
Thanks for that - I was looking at the California Cryobank. I am going to be shipping
to south africa - so Europe or USA, the shipping will be expensive, but ESB is not
as dear as the California Cryobank.
So many thanks! 
Candee


----------

