# 3 failed ICSI cycles - looking for advice/ideas on what next



## percom (Jun 13, 2016)

Hi everyone, 

My wife and I have just reached the end of our third and final ICSI cycle on the NHS with yet another negative outcome, and we’re now starting to weigh up our options for the future. We’ve got a 10-12 week wait for the NHS consultant appointment to review our most recent failed cycle, so in the meantime are thinking about getting a couple of private consultations. Sorry this is such a long post, but I’m posting up our treatment history here in the hope of receiving some advice. If anyone has experienced similar outcomes, has thoughts on what we should be asking at future consultations, have any opinions on London-based clinics/treatment options etc, I’d very much appreciate it. Here’s the history:

2015: we decided I’d do the treatment due to a number of practical/financial factors. Approached LWC about IVF and was recommended to get as much testing done on NHS as possible before deciding on a treatment plan. LWC measure AMH at 33.1 (age 31).

early 2016: referral to NHS fertility clinic and discovered I have a unicornuate uterus with one ovary not attached, the other ovary is connected but the tube is potentially not in great condition, so I qualified for NHS treatment. All other tests suggest good ovarian reserve, etc, and consultant thought a positive outcome was likely so we decide to move forward with NHS treatment, rather than exploring the possibility of my wife doing the treatment.

Nov 2016 (age 32): first short cycle ICSI. Fresh cycle planned but had to change to freeze-all due to danger of developing OHSS. 16 eggs collected, 11 mature, 9 fertilised, 1 4BC blast to freeze, all others discarded. Consultant said they were very surprised with such a poor outcome for someone of my age and it was most likely just bad luck and they would have expected 4 or 5 embryos from the cycle.

June 2017 (age 32): FET, BFP by 6dp5dt, getting stronger each day, then AF starts 12dp5dt, BFN confirmed finally on 18dp5dt after several blood tests showing hcg levels falling.

April 2018 (age 33): 2nd short cycle ICSI. I felt like I wasn’t properly monitored during this cycle and 3 days prior to egg collection I had 8 follicles of at least 25-26mm. 8 eggs were collected, 6 fertilised, all arrested by day 5 except one very slow developer that was still at the morula phase. We were given the option to transfer it or to abandon the cycle. They asked us to make the decision in a split second once I was already in the gown and waiting in the transfer room which I thought was inappropriate. We chose to do the transfer, but had they given us a bit more time in a more appropriate location I think we would have probably decided to abandon the cycle. Unsurprisingly it resulted in a BFN.

Summer 2018: consultant follow up about 2nd cycle. We raised the possibility of using my wife's eggs as we felt we had a clear issue with embryo development, and thought it was likely to stem from my eggs. We were told we ‘were a long way from needing to go down that route and it may just be an issue with the sperm donor’. Therefore it was recommended that we change sperm donor and go back on the NHS waiting list for a third and final time.

April 2019 (age 34): 3rd short cycle ICSI. 11 eggs collected, 9 fertilised, 2 slow developing ‘early stage’ blasts by day 5. 1 transferred, BFN. We won’t have our official follow up consultation from this cycle until July/August, but annoyingly, we were told during the transfer that our continued poor outcome ‘was very unlikely to be a problem with the sperm given we were using donor sperm from a sperm bank’. This was in complete contradiction to what we’d previously been told.

So now we find ourselves (me just turned 35, wife almost 37) trying to decide on our next move. We’re not 100% sure we want to continue seeking treatment, but if we did, my wife has always been keen to use my eggs and is reluctant to use hers, partly due to a number of childhood health issues (although none were genetic, and she’s now completely healthy). We know we have a number of options, but I suppose from this post we’re most interested to hear about any ideas/experiences of treatments/clinics if we were to continue to try to use my eggs? Or if anyone has been in a similar situation and thinks we should just save ourselves the time, money and stress, and move on from seeking treatment for me?


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## K jade (Aug 11, 2013)

hi 
im so sorry for your difficult journey

I was a brilliant responder to meds and got a good number of eggs. i did get to blast but the quality was always a bit iffy. 
they tended to be around the B grade. once i got two AAs which were frozen (ohss) . they died instantly upon thaw. 
like you I used  donor sperm as my DP is completely infertile, but even the best sperm in the world couldn't seem to get me top grade surviving blasts. i was 31 when i had my 1st rounf of ivf. 
so my story is similar to yours. 

ill cut to the chase as in  the end I went for donor eggs (embryos actually) as just wanted to be pregnant. 
i had been on this road since 2011 and was emotionally and financially spent. 
im 34 so still very young to be a donor egg recipient. 
sometimes i do wander if i gave up too easily on OE but then again im pretty sure id reached my limit

i will say that the clinic i did my OE ivf with had very bad success rates (also NHS ) so there was a chance that a better clinic could have got me OE success. 

if you have only used 1 NHS clinic for your cycles and are keen to try again with own eggs, id recommend changing clinics. 

if you are in London the ARGC is the best if you can afford it. 
other than that CRGH, and Zita west are also  very good. 


however all London clinics are very expensive in my opinion . so if abroad is an option Newlife in Greece has astonishing success rates and much cheaper than the UK

best of luck
Kjxx


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## Blossomberni (Mar 8, 2016)

Hi Percom - First of all I'm sorry that you are going through this. It's not nice at all and doesn't help that you have to wait so long for a consultation post this 3rd transfer. 

I'm not sure where you had your treatment but I thought I would make a suggestion for a clinic to look into. I have never been able to have NHS funded treatment as we didn't make it in time for a referral before I was 40. I'm using Kings Fertility after following a consultant who I totally trust from his previous clinic. I had a 3 yr gap between 2016 and 2019 due to my Father being terminally ill. I'm 44 now but we had our remaining 2 embryos transported to Kings to have another go at treatment. I cannot speak highly enough of the clinic overall, its extremely professional and treatment is tailored to the patient. There are no ridiculous unproven add ons and the advice is open and honest. I use Ippokratis Sarris specifically but have had interactions on the telephone with other doctors from there and they have been fantastic. It has been a totally different experience to the clinic I used previously. If you are going to give it another try I would recommend you book a consultation with Dr Sarris at Kings. You will get in my opinion a very honest and thorough consultation. The website is pretty good now and there are some info videos to look at with Dr Sarris presenting them! You now have the choice of clinics so use the time to find one where you are comfortable and trust them. It makes all the difference.

My other advice would be to get your records from the NHS so that you can send them to any clinic you decide to have a consultation at so they can look through before your appointment. I'm not sure how long it takes to obtain NHS records so I would get onto this straight away. 

I wish you both all the best and don't let your age hinder your decision!

Blossom


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## mumsey2be (Apr 24, 2019)

I am so sorry for your struggles. I would echo K Jade. We had the male factor azoospermia and got pregnant with donor sperm. But miscarried . then three unsuccessful ICSI IVF's i was also a poor responder. Its luck of the draw - many people will have good eggs and get pregnant via first IVf but some of us sadly just dont have goodies. So i also went for double donation and am also pregnant. It was a lot cheaper, a lot less stressful and i feel a lot more positive about it. Egg donation is hard to get your head round at first but it is really just one cell and the pain and disappointment and stress of IVF can be very corrosive. Best wishes to you both  = PM for more info x


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