# De Montfort University Research on Overseas Fertility Treatment



## NickyDMU (May 12, 2006)

Hi All!

Recent headlines in the press have drawn attention to an apparent increase in numbers of British people who are travelling overseas for fertility treatment. News banners such as: 'Warning over fertility tourism' and 'Couples warned of dangers in fertility tourism', have helped to portray a negative picture of this trend. In the meantime, however, the reasons why people are seeking help with conception from overseas clinics are rarely reported. Despite a good deal of media speculation, little is known for sure about why people choose to travel to other countries for treatment, or about what happens to them when they do. What's more, as a number of Fertility Friends members have pointed out, any positive aspects of this experience remain largely invisible in press reports.

In response to this, we have recently begun a research study (funded by the Economic and Social Research Council www.esrc.ac.uk) to explore the motivations, experiences and support needs of those people who are thinking about or have been abroad for fertility treatment. Most importantly, our research will look at this phenomenon from the perspective of those who are making decisions about the pros and cons of seeking reproductive care in another country. We want to hear the views and experiences of those directly involved. If you think you can help, we would love to hear from you. We are interested to find out what led you to consider going abroad, what happened to you during the process, and how you feel about your experiences. You might have considered this option and ruled it out, still be in the middle of the process, or already have had treatment abroad. In all of these cases, we would like to talk to you at your convenience and in confidence.

If you are interested in taking part in the study, please contact us on the number/email address below for more information. To check your eligibility for the study, you will be asked to complete a pre-interview questionnaire. On the basis of this questionnaire we may then invite you to take part in an interview of approximately one hour at a time and place convenient to you. We would particularly welcome volunteers from minority ethnic communities and from same sex couples. We are also keen to include both women and men (separately) in the study. In all cases, your involvement in the study and identity will of course be kept anonymous.

To volunteer, or for more information about taking part, please contact me, Dr Nicky Hudson, project researcher, on 0116 2078766 or [email protected] for more information, or visit our website www.transrep.co.uk

Thank you.

This post contains an unconfirmed link/information and readers are reminded that FertilityFriends.co.uk or its owners are not responsible for the content of external internet sites


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## Ruth (Aug 6, 2004)

Please do get involved with this!!

I am on their panel and think it is a great idea to be able to get views across as to what it is really like going abroad for treatment.

Ruth


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## roze (Mar 20, 2004)

Hi, I've already participated in this research and found the staff really open and sympathetic and it was  really therapeutic that someone , at last, wanted to listen and understand. There has been so much negative press around recently and I have to say that the unpleasant and largely untrue picture painted of ' abroadies' in general (going abroad for anonymity, because we are too old etc) has affected me and upset me greatly as I think it shapes public opinion, even unfortunately many of the medical profession whom I have come across, ie some GP's even hospital consultants. At one point I really felt victimised every time I opened a paper, even the more reputable ones. It also seemed that anything outside of the UK could only be inadequate. Therefore any research that enables wider and better understanding can only be a good thing. 

I have already elsewhere and copiously cited my own experience of being on a donor waiting list at a UK clinic for over 5 years and not heard a dicky bird. When I call they say, predictably, ' oh, you will probably hear from us next week'. Apparently in addition to the £6k for treatment I was supposed to pay an additional ' bunce' of £750 towards advertising costs, even more if necessary, ( it seems that the more you pay, the quicker you move up the list) however no one ever asked me/told me  about this, so as far as they were concerned, they seemed quite happy for me to languish on their lists for years, even beyond the age where they would normally accept me. Even though I have formally raised this issue several weeks ago I have still not received a response from the clinic or even a straight answer about why I have never heard anything from them or where precisely I am on the waiting list. Surely that is a simple enough question?  It just seems that I have been hung out to dry. I even understand that some women do pay these sums and still hear nothing about a donor which is equally abominable. Hence there appears to be hidden charges in the UK that are not usually factored in. Thank God I didn't wait around for them to deliver. 

I think this is dreadfully shabby treatment and whilst I know that there are many other clinics in the UK that perform better, I still think  that the treatment, standards and quality at the 4 clinics I have visited abroad were much superior to the 'private' clinics and hospitals I have experienced here with demonstrably greater evidence of hygiene and cleaning practices and most certainly professionalism.

Our own fertility issues started a decade ago with unresolved issues which it seems now with knowledge and experience could have been easily dealt with by the NHS at the time. After paying for IUI then IVF tx with my own eggs , (in the UK) it was only when we went abroad that we were told that due to DH's sperms' low motility, all these attempts were a complete waste of time and we had no chance without ICSI. At that point it was too late to use my eggs as I was no longer responding to the meds.  However my partners sperm was never questioned in the UK - we had a situation where in a matter of 3 weeks the sperm were considered good ( in the UK) and good only for ICSI in two Spanish clinics.  Meanwhile we had forked out around £12k on treatments at the US backed clinic in question in London, treatments which it seemed had never any chance of working.

I was thinking last night that so many people come to the UK for its medical specialities yet no one criticises them for doing so. And we have so many excellent doctors here from 'abroad' who are making great breakthroughs in research. I am thinking of Mr Taranassi who of course has had his own problems with the UK media and regulatory bodies, and has been wholly vindicated. The fact is that he has produced so many successes, perhaps putting other clinics with more influence into the shade. My view is that in general,  with the exception of ARGC,  private clinics, regulated by the HFEA here in the UK have for too long been sitting taking peoples money without doing too much work or providing an adequately service tailored to the particular needs of their patients.

However ' abroad' is a big place and it still pays to research well and shop around ( not the best phrase I know) widely for prices and quality of services, and above all, rigour and probity in donor recruitment and treatment. The recent headlines about Romania (not the first time) are deeply concerning but again it would seem that this is another case of Western professionals being compliant in exploitation. 

Sorry for going on a bit (again) but I do think this research is very valuable and I would recommend participation. We have a lot to say and contribute. Lets therefore strike back with some facts!


roze


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## Jane D (Apr 16, 2007)

I would thoroughly recommend helping with the survey.  I signed up a number of weeks ago and had a very good telephone interview with the researcher.  It is vitally important we get our views across and of course the university will give a completely impartial slant on the findings, which hopefully will highlight more of the positive points about going abroad and what improvements are needed in the Uk in terms of support and customer service.

Jane


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## NickyDMU (May 12, 2006)

Hi All,

Thank you to those of you who have already responded to my request - we really appreciate it! 

A quick question for you all - we're aware that a big factor in people travelling abroad is the shortage of donor gametes (particularly donor eggs) in this country, but we are also interested to speak to anyone who is going overseas and using their own eggs and sperm. Are people doing this? And therefore going abroad for other reasons?

If this applies to anyone, I'd love to hear from you. You can send me a personal message, or email me (details in my original post). 

Thank you!
Nicky


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## salsa3786 (Sep 3, 2009)

roze said:


> Hi, I've already participated in this research and found the staff really open and sympathetic and it was really therapeutic that someone , at last, wanted to listen and understand. There has been so much negative press around recently and I have to say that the unpleasant and largely untrue picture painted of ' abroadies' in general (going abroad for anonymity, because we are too old etc) has affected me and upset me greatly as I think it shapes public opinion, even unfortunately many of the medical profession whom I have come across, ie some GP's even hospital consultants. At one point I really felt victimised every time I opened a paper, even the more reputable ones. It also seemed that anything outside of the UK could only be inadequate. Therefore any research that enables wider and better understanding can only be a good thing.
> 
> I have already elsewhere and copiously cited my own experience of being on a donor waiting list at a UK clinic for over 5 years and not heard a dicky bird. When I call they say, predictably, ' oh, you will probably hear from us next week'. Apparently in addition to the £6k for treatment I was supposed to pay an additional ' bunce' of £750 towards advertising costs, even more if necessary, ( it seems that the more you pay, the quicker you move up the list) however no one ever asked me/told me about this, so as far as they were concerned, they seemed quite happy for me to languish on their lists for years, even beyond the age where they would normally accept me. Even though I have formally raised this issue several weeks ago I have still not received a response from the clinic or even a straight answer about why I have never heard anything from them or where precisely I am on the waiting list. Surely that is a simple enough question? It just seems that I have been hung out to dry. I even understand that some women do pay these sums and still hear nothing about a donor which is equally abominable. Hence there appears to be hidden charges in the UK that are not usually factored in. Thank God I didn't wait around for them to deliver.
> 
> ...


Hi there

Could you please let me know which clinic in London you were at and out of the ones in Spain which ones you found better than others. I have been advised by my specialist to have egg donor treatment in Spain due to the waiting list being so long in the UK. I would be grateful if you could take time out to provide the details any e mail and tel no's for the spanish clincis would be helpful.

Best wishes

Salsa3786


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