# Not sure what to do next...



## Molly78 (Jul 1, 2014)

i m 39 and have just had a miscarriage at 6 weeks with a top grade blastocyst, prior to this I had a failed fresh with top grade blastocyst as well as failed fet (same batch as my son who is now 2). So in total I ve had 3 failed attempts with good blastocysts. I changed clinics between the failed fet and the last two attempts due to better success rates, however, I never had a great feeling about the new clinic and it hasn't worked so I m tempted to go back to my original clinic even though the success rates are 20% lower.
I m just not sure how much more money and energy I should throw at cycles using my own eggs as even though I have blastocysts they don't seem to be working. My husbands sperm seems to have gone downhill too, he has very low count and morphology, with our first cycle his sperm was good enough for IVF but last time we had to do Icsi which I ve heard is worse for older eggs. 

Not sure what to do next, if anyone has experiences to share it would be appreciated please. Sorry for the rant 😫 x


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## Claudia H (Oct 2, 2015)

Hi Molly,

so sorry about your awful miscarriages and BFNs. This journey is very cruel somtimes. 

I have had 4 failed fresh transfers, all with good Blastocysts so I can sympathize. I would say though, and I am sure you already know this but sadly just because the blastocyst is a good grade it doesn't mean it is genetically normal, and sadly by our late 30s a lot of our eggs have chromosomal abnormalities. It really depends how much money and time you can bare to throw at this - but what I am doing now is a 3 cycle batching package which is cheaper and quicker than 3 separate cycles. The embryos are frozen on day 1 at the 2pn sage for the first two cycles and then on the third cycle they are thawed and cultured to blastocyst along with the new embryos form that cycle. Then you biopsy, freeze and do PGS testing to find out if you have any normal ones. Having a normal embryo is not a guarantee of success as I very painfully learned at our last transfer, but it hugely increases your odds. Different clinics will charge different amounts for this but I am at the Lister and a 3 cycle package there is £9,500. Then there would be meds and PGS on top. It's a lot of money I know, but I think it's worth it as a final last effort before moving on to DE if you are able to find the funds somehow. 

best of luck and sending big hugs xxx


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## Molly78 (Jul 1, 2014)

Hi Claudia thanks so much for your message. Yes it does get your hopes us when they say that the blastocysts look perfect but then they don't work. I did briefly look at pgs but I m not sure if I can justify the cost, plus I am not sure if any of the clinics around us do this, I m currently at Midlands fertility and they don't do it. They have advised me to do immune blood tests which are quite costly as the next step also said to start taking dhea. With my last cycle which ended in miscarriage they gave me steroids. I have an appointment at my original clinic on Tuesday to get their opinion too, they are fairly traditional but they did get it to work but my eggs were better then 😱 x


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## miamiamo (Aug 9, 2015)

I am sorry I can't help really, but I want to say that success rates are not the only issue you should consider when picking a clinic. You might read more: egg donationfriends com/success-rates-ivf-with-donor-eggs-truth-clinics-dont-tell/ Hope this helps


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## Molly78 (Jul 1, 2014)

Thanks Miamiamo, we've actually decided to go back to my original clinic where we were successful with our little boy. My gut feeling tells me this is the right decision but who knows! I m having a few months off going to dry dhea even though my consultant does not really believe in this alternative methods but I want to try everything to improve egg quality x


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## Claudia H (Oct 2, 2015)

Hi Molly,

I'm also now on DHEA. My consultant also previously said he didn't really want me to bother with it, but this time as its our last go he agreed to let me give it a shot. Totally understand about the PGS - this whole process is so extremely expensive.... every penny saved is a good thing. I think it's only worth it if you have quite a few blasts and the cost of doing several FETs actually adds up to more than the cost of a one off PGS test. That was the case with us, but we had 6 frosties to test at the time. If we don't get a good number again, we also probably won't bother doing it and will just transfer and see what happens. 

xx


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## Molly78 (Jul 1, 2014)

Let's hope the dhea pays off for us both. I ve read quite a bit around it including the book called its all about the egg which promotes it,my consultant said there is no scientific evidence but this is our last shot and I m willing to try anything. How much are you taking Claudia? I m on 75mg only started this week so haven't got a gruff voice and beard yet xx


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## Claudia H (Oct 2, 2015)

that's exactly the same as me - my consultant also says there is no evidence it works - but then I have also read quite a lot of stuff that references studies that say it does work so who knows? And my consultant just agreed that as it's our last go we might as well though the kitchen sink at it. It's not going to do any harm so why not. I am also on 75mg a day, been on it for about a month now and no side effects at all so fx it continues this way....!

x


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## Molly78 (Jul 1, 2014)

I think it's worth a shot Claudia. This is also our last cycle. We're going back to our original clinic they're going to do a short protocol this time. Planning to cycle in June to give dhea a chance to work... Wishing you all the best xx


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## Molly78 (Jul 1, 2014)

Need to decide whether to have bloods tested for nk cells my original clinic thinks it's very unlikely as I already have a child but not sure to get it done to eliminate any potential problems... Xx


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## Claudia H (Oct 2, 2015)

That's a tricky one. I'd be tempted to agree with your clinic that it's unlikely seeing as you already had a son. I had nk cells/immune testing done because I had had several fresh blastocyst transfers that all ended in a BFN so I was also suspicious, but it all came back fine. As much as I hate to admit it, I think it's more likely that age is the negative factor when you get to your late 30s. And there is pretty scanty evidence available for all the immunes stuff anyway. 

having said that, knowing all of this I still went ahead and got tested for it anyway (despite my doctor also saying it was unlikely) as i just wanted to rule everything out. Then at least I could know for sure that it was just age and not some other potentially curable issue. 

So I guess it comes down to money, are you happy to spend the money in the knowledge that it's an 'exploring every possibility' exercise and will most likely be fine? I was, because I desperately wanted that clarity and certainty before I considered donor eggs which we will do next. But of course that clarity comes at a financial cost... 

I am not sure I'm helping much! But that was my thought process
xx


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## Molly78 (Jul 1, 2014)

Thanks Claudia it's helpful, I m going to find out how much the immune testing is and take it from there. My clinic has recommended having them done at Warwick implantation clinic so I need to contact them directly. You're probably right it's the dreaded age factor! X


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