# 46 going to TTC using DE



## older mum (Jan 19, 2013)

Hi I am 46 (47 in March) and my DP is 34.  I have from a previous marriage DS 19 and DD 16. DP does not have any children.  We have been together for 6 years and TTC for 2.  We have had all the tests, there is nothing wrong with DP and nothing wrong with me other than age.  We have been told by Seacroft Hospital in Leeds, we have less than 1% chance of conceiving naturally, and same with IVF.  Therefore we are now wanting to try IVF with DE.  Has anyone else been in similar situations or going through the same.  We were looking to have the TX at Seacroft, can anyone suggest anywhere else that may be better.  I think we will only have enough funding for one lot of TX.  Thanks


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## cornwall (Apr 9, 2012)

Hi,
My situation is very similar to yours, except my children are older (in their mid 20s). DH and I are both 49 and are in the two week wait of our second DE IVF cycle. DH has no kids of his own and it was only my age stopping us from conceiving. We went straight for donor IVF as we saw no point in trying with my own eggs.

We are with Pedieos, Cyprus as they have a special offer of up to 6 cycles over 2 years for 7,500 euros. It meant we didn't have to worry about finding the money for multiple cycles. 

If you feel able to go abroad, it is generally cheaper and faster. We had a consultation in the UK and they had a 2 year waiting list with a cut off age of 50 - so no use to us at all.

Hope this helps with your decision making. Have a look at the Donor threads.


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## BECKY7 (Feb 2, 2011)

Older mum  have you thought about going abroad fro DE as I am going to reprofit for 1 last goes with my egg and sperm donor and I will be having mild IVF which is much kinder for my old egg and it cost me €800  if that doesn't work then I will have double donor for €2300  so it is alot cheaper then UK.
Becky7 xx


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## Passenger42 (Jan 27, 2010)

Hi there


I went to Pedieos also and I am 47 and I got pregnant on my second attempt with them (3 failed tx in Spain).  There were my last chance saloon as my money had run out and I am so glad I went with them.  They are not a fancy clinic, but they do know there stuff and they are open to try new things for immunes.


My other clinics I considered were Serum and Reprofit.


Best of luck with your choice, but if you only have the funds for one attempt Pedieos is a good call.  Remember to factor in the cost of flights and hotels.


Passenger x


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## ♥JJ1♥ (Feb 11, 2006)

my friend is 46 and pregnant with DE from Eugin clinic in Spain. I am currently at Serum in Greece and preparing for a DE cycle there
L x


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## older mum (Jan 19, 2013)

Thank you all for your comments.  We will look into going to Cyprus, it was suggested to us at the hospital but I disregarded it.  I am so new to all of this and do not fully understand all the treatment.  I may make myself look silly now, but how does it all work if going abroad.  Is the donor English and do they still try and find a donor of similar colouring, build etc?  The injections and other medication needed to prepare, where does that take place.  Cornwall you mentioned about the offer they are doing of 6 cycles in 2 years, does that mean 6 attempts?  Wishing you all the very best.


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## suitcase of dreams (Oct 7, 2007)

have a look at this thread, may help answer some of your questions:
http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=256679.0
In short though - donors abroad are generally not English but yes they will try to match on physical characteristics. You will get v limited info re donor and they will remain anon (not identifiable to the child when they get older - unlike the UK which uses only ID release donors)
Meds are usually provided by the overseas clinic or they will provide a script and you source them yourself from a pharmacy here (there are several which are used to dealing with foreign scripts and will post meds to you if you aren't local to them) You will prob need a local clinic to do at least one scan before you fly out for embryo transfer but there are plenty of private ultrasound clinics which can do this
all the best
Suitcase
x


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## cornwall (Apr 9, 2012)

Hi,

Yes, 6 cycles means 6 attempts. There are conditions - 3 cycles each year. Also, they consider a cycle to be successful if there is a heartbeat at 10 weeks (I think). However, they seem quite relaxed about the rules.
I'm pale skinned with brown hair - very English! My donors have been from Eastern Europe and I've been happy with the matches. You are given the basic donor information and asked to accept or reject the donor, so you may decide to reject them and wait for another one. Pedieos are very quick at finding donors.

Read Suitcase's thread as it contains loads of excellent information about the various clinics. I emailed 4 clinics for information before settling for Pedieos.


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## aprilclare (Aug 29, 2012)

Hi,

There is some overlap in our situations so I want to respond. I have an adult DD and I met DP when I was in my early 40s. He is childless and was very keen to be a Dad so we went for some tests and got similar advice to you re donor eggs. I couldn't immediately get my head round this and we then both got caught up with our Mums getting ill at the same time. We tried Duofertility (which was very good for finding out more about what was going on) then went for a more comprehensive fertility MOT which resulted in me having a cancer scare. Knowing I could lose both ovaries but hoping my womb would be saved I realised donor eggs would be our only hope so we looked into it further and went to the London Women's Clinic open day. We have some friends who had their son through that clinic and LWC have several clinics around the UK some with quite short waiting lists.

By the time I got cleared for Donor Egg treatment I was 48 and we spent about 6 months on the waiting list before being matched. After a couple of false starts we were matched with someone who has some surprising similarities to my family despite the clinic not knowing the details of my family background!

Our care commitments for DPs Mum, who has dementia, mean treatment abroad wouldn't be possible and I also like the way the system works here. We are doing the egg sharing option which means paying for someone elses treatment and them donating half their eggs to us which also feels good.

I'll be having the scan to see how my womb lining is doing this Friday with the hope of embryo transfer around the start of February. Good luck with your planning!

xx


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## Cranky Angie (Jan 16, 2013)

Hi I am 45, just had a m/mc at 8 weeks after 2nd DE attempt (FET), we are with Instituto Bernabeu in Alicante.  I have a son aged 7 and my DH has DS and DD aged 21 and 17 from previous marriage.  We have been TTC sibling for our son since he was born, tried 3 cycles with own eggs and now these 2 DE cycles.  The last one was the first BFP we ever got and was devastated when they failed to find heartbeat at the second US after all looking good at the first one.     Now trying to pick myself up, DH now saying he will try once and once more only (hate it when he says this I feel like it puts such pressure on me .... plus my age) Would appreciate any advice  or support, I feel like I have been doing this for SO long, I first wanted a child when I was 31 ... boyfriend wouldn't consider .... tried to persuade him to change mind (waste of time).  Found new boyfriend at 34, waited a year for him to agree to have kids then took over 2 years to conceive DS.  And waiting 7 years for a sibling.  All this is so hard.  Just want to touch base with anyone who has similar experiences.  Don't know where the years have gone.  Thanks ange xxx


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## Passenger42 (Jan 27, 2010)

Hi Ange

I thought I would reply to you as you seem to be going through a rough time at present. Can I ask if the reason your husband says he will only agree to one more attempt is for financial reasons or due to emotional roller coaster (probably both)!

Using DE is not a guaranteed route to success after 3 tx, I know for sure as it took me 5 attempts to get as far as I have currently. I had a relationship at breaking point after 2 failed fresh attempts and a 3rd tx which resulted in blighted ovum miscarriage through an FET in Barcelona. I managed to persuade my then DP to freeze his sperm in Cyprus and we switched clinics to Pedieos in Nicosia. I paid the 7,500 euros (it was around 6K) and my first attempt failed. My second attempt in Cyprus which was my 5th attempt in total worked. I tried intralipids and steriods on this final tx and I dont know if it helped but I wanted to try anything to improve my chances.

I am two years older than your as I am 47. I just want to say do plenty of research before you commit to this last cycle and see what offers are available at present. I think Pedieos still offer UK patients 6 tx over 2 years (3 per year). I flew out on my own, booked an apartment and did all the organising alone as the sperm was already frozen by the clinic and it was fine, no stress involved, hired a car and drove to the clinic, alternatively a shuttle runs from the airport to Nicosia and its a taxi ride to the clinic.

If funds are tight you can also consider BCN IVF as they do a shared donor programme in Barcelona. That choice might give you two attempts rather than one tx.

Best of luck

Passenger x


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## Lirac (Sep 18, 2008)

Hi oldermum,
I can recommend IB (Alicante) but they are expensive! However, they do have very high success rates, largely because they focus on getting the embryos to blast stage before transfer I think. On my third attempt, I had to have a single embryo transfer because of health risks with a multiple p/g and they showed me their SET stats, which were still in the high 60%s.
I am hoping to have our final embryo transferred next month, which means that (if successful), I will have three children under three at 50! But wouldn't change it for the world and know how very blessed we are  
Lirac x


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## older mum (Jan 19, 2013)

Hi Ladies, thank you all again for your support and advice.  After discussions with DP, we have decided treatment will have to be in the UK.  We have looked into carefertility in Sheffield and I have emailed them several times and they have answered all my questions almost immediately, does anyone have any info on them?  The reason for choosing them so far is they seem to have a high success rate and only a month waiting list which is my bug bare with the NHS.  Because me and DP are not registered at the same address they will not accept us for treatment until we are registered at the same address for 6 months, then there is a 6-9 month waiting list.  Myself and DP and my 2 teenagers are together 24/7, but we both have small houses that cannot accommodate all of our joint possessions.  We have a house which is currently been done up which we all aim to be moving into in the coming months, but I do not feel I have the time to wait for what the NHS are asking.

I feel inspired by all of your stories and feel you are very brave.  Lirac, having three under 3 at fifty is fantastic and the reason why I am so determined to have a go despite my fears.  Aprilcare, you have had a pretty rough time by the  sound of things, how are things now, wishing you all the best.  Ange, you have also had a really bad time, I just hope you all get the happiness you are deserved xx


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