# New, v low AMH, waiting to see doctor at St Mary's



## tamsinw (Mar 11, 2009)

Hi all

Feeling a bit battered... 

Husband (R) and I TTC for a while, initially got referred to St Mary's for ICSI, but now my blood test results have shown I have v low AMH. After constantly dialling and redialling all 3 clinic numbers for 3 hours(!!!) I finally got a call back from Seema the nurse to ask more details, but only after R had made a complaint to the hospital and I had left a message on the IVF laboratory answerphone!

Seema has said that I have very little chance of ICSI treatment now and feel pretty despondent    Consultant appt arranged for 30 April but I'll keep trying for a cancellation.

FYI: I'm 37 (just!), R is 38 and we're both fit (BMIs 20-21), healthy and non-smokers.

Any advice/guidance welcomed...
Tamsin


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## Chedza (Jun 14, 2008)

Tamsin
Hi sorry you are feeling low- to be honest (in my experience) St Mary's seem to have very strict criteria for who they take on to do IVF/ICSI ie the parameters for age are  only up to 39 and think they only take over a certain age too. I reckon this may be the case for AMH results.Have you tried a private consultation ?? Care Manchester are very good- although they will probably request to see a copy of your AMH blood test - try to get it sent to them. Consultations are free(not sure could be £150)  - but if you went for AMH test with them it would cost £75 .  I know going privately is expensive but I do believe  they would be able to help you. Number is 0161 249 3040 - ask to talk to Dr Atkinson or to get consultation with him.
Good Luck - and dont take no for an  answer- the NHS wouldnt treat you if your BMI was too high or too low-  which I personally think is a load of bull  
Take care 
Chedza


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## tamsinw (Mar 11, 2009)

Hi Chedza

Huge thanks for the info and words of support. My St Mary's appointment has been brought forward and is only in a couple of weeks but I'll get in touch with CARE while I'm waiting.

Its good to know that its not over yet... 

Thanks T x


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## Chedza (Jun 14, 2008)

Tamsin
This whole IF rubbish seems to make one a lot more determined- Keep on , keeping on ... there are ALWAYS possibilities- God ,wish i could take my own advice !!!  ont Give Up and Good Luck 
Chedza


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## mandamoo (Jan 12, 2009)

hi sorry to hear you having probs with st marys, join us on st marys part 2 thread (under lancashire), lots of us on there having treatment at the mo. xx


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## almond (Mar 20, 2008)

Hi Tamsin, dont know what your amh is but mine was 3.5 on the pmol scale last Feb, and I cycled a year later and got 4 eggs. Some clinics will write you off straight away with low AMH, others don't. Unfortunately I got a BFN, but I am still in the game and will certainly cycle in future.

If you come over to the poor responders thread, there are lots of us with low AMH. You can find it under "IVF general chit chat."

If I can help, please get in touch. And welcome to FF! I have learnt loads here. I was devastated when I got my low AMH result last year, but this site has really helped and I have read some good success stories.
x


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## Felicity Wishes (Feb 18, 2008)

Hi Tamsin 

 and 

Fertility Friends is such a great place, which offers a world of support, help & advice at the touch of a button, you will soon get the hang of it and find some fantastic friends on here ^cuddle^

Lots of Love & Loads of Luck to you

Felicity Wishes  &


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## Caz (Jul 21, 2002)

Tamsin, welcome to Fertility Friends. 

So sorry to hear you seem to be struggling just to get answers at the moment. I think you've already been given some great advice from Cedza and I would certainly second that up and ay look at a private consult. Some clinics have very strict criteria or are quick to dismiss hope when another would gladly treat you. You may never be a brilliant responder but that doens't mean to say you're completely ineligible for ICSI and you really won't know how oyu'll repsond until you try!

Here are some links you might find helpful at the moment. Please do have a look around and explore and start posting around the boards and making friends. FF is a wonderfully supportive community and you can only get the best out of it if you start posting and joining in so, please do so.

*What Every New Member Needs To Know (includes a list of common abbreviations) ~ *   CLICK HERE

*A Rough Guide To IVF ~*   CLICK HERE

*ICSI ~ *CLICK HERE

*What can improve egg quality and quantity ~ * CLICK HERE

You can have a bit of fun or just gossip while you are on FF too so check out the general chit chat / jokes / hobbies area:

*Girl & Boy talk - Community & Fun Board ~ *CLICK HERE

You can also chat live in our excellent chat room. We have a newbie night in the chat room every week (*Wednesday at 8pm*), where you can meet other new members and get technical support with navigating the site and using all the functions available here.  CLICK HERE FOR INFO ON NEWBIE CHAT 

You can also "meet" and chat with people in your local area through the *Location boards*. This is especially useful to find people who may be using the same clinic and or in the same PCT area.

Wishing you lots of luck! 

C~x


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## tamsinw (Mar 11, 2009)

Thank you to everyone here - its so nice to be made to feel so welcome and supported.

I will definitely look around at all threads/links suggested.

My AMH is VERY low at 0.7 (ie below low range of 2-15) but as said, I won't know how I'll respond unless I try  

T x


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## tamsinw (Mar 11, 2009)

Hi all

Not sure if anyone will read this (being new to FF) but I wanted to highlight that the most recent published clinical research highlights that although AMH is a useful indicator of ovarian reserve, it does NOT predict response to stimulation (in IVF) OR pregnancy. The only way to see how any one individual will respond to IVF is to go through a cycle.

In case anyone wonders, I'm a medical writer and my job involves researching specific areas of medicine (from cancer to IBS) and writing about them in a scientific balanced manner! I can provide reference details (or links to some of the published research) if anyone wants them 

Off to see consultant this afternoon... wish me luck  
T


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## Guest (Mar 30, 2009)

Exactly! While there are follicles there may be eggs and you do not know until you look 

xxx


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## Jumanji (Feb 13, 2008)

I am sorry to hear about what you are going through but you seem to have thr right attitude.  You just have to go for it.  My sister never had an AMH test but her FSH was up at 22 (the like it to be under 10) and she did fine when she actually cycled.  It is just a hormone result and that is all!!


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## Caz (Jul 21, 2002)

Hi again Tamsin, thank you for that information about AMH. It's always interetsing to hear the latest developments that have come out of the infertility world. Do you have any on line articles that you can provide links to with this research? We have a News board here which this information would be ideal for and would bring great hope for many I am sure:

News & Discussions: http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?board=200.0

C~x


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## nicola26 (Mar 17, 2009)

sorry to hear about your troubles, i am new to all this also.. dont mean to sound a bit thick but what is AMH??

this maybe a result i am waiting for.

nicola xxx


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## tamsinw (Mar 11, 2009)

Hi Nicola

AMH = antimullerian hormone. 

It is a new 'marker' that doctors are using to estimate how many eggs you have left (the number gradually diminishes naturally during your reproductive life, i.e teenage to menopause). Some clinics (not all) are now measuring it as another indication of how well a woman responds to IVF (the most widely used marker is FSH - follicle-stimulating hormone). St Mary's have a cut-off of 2.2 ng/mL (i.e. they won't treat you if your level is lower than this).

However, AMH is a new marker and has not been proven to give any indication of egg quality, or how well a woman may respond to drugs used to stimulate egg production in IVF. There is also little evidence to show that it predicts likelihood of pregnancy.

I will post some links to medical research where Caz has suggested (I'll try to do this tomorrow)... I'm used to reading this stuff so give me a shout if you have any questions!

T x


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## Caz (Jul 21, 2002)

I saw you posted those links Tamsin, thank you very much for doing so, that's fab info and we need more of this kind of stuff to balance out the hearsay and negativity around IVF and infertiloity.

How did your appointment go today? 

C~x


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## tamsinw (Mar 11, 2009)

Hi Caz

Appt went as expected mostly - v low AMH, below St Mary's threshold of 2.2 so therefore not suitable for IVF.   It was funny when the doctor said that how I function in my normal cycle has no impact on how I'll function in IVF and yet they've refused to treat me based on a measure taken during my normal cycling!!!        

We argued the scientific case so at least they agreed to do a follicle scan and I'll be seeing Head of Dept at her earliest appt ... in mid-June (good old NHS!).

I doubt it'll do any good as they have to meet their 'statistical' targets of success  

We'll be looking at private clinics so no doubt I'll be trawling the posts on FF!

Huge thanks for your support and nice things you said about my short AMH summary  

T x


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## nicola26 (Mar 17, 2009)

Thanks for that,  I am trying to read up on everything to get a head start.

I hope it all turns out good for you x


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