Thinking about donating eggs or sperm?

11:25 8th June 2022 | Egg Donation

Egg donation Donor Donation Sperm donor semen donor oocyte donor

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT BEING A GAMETE DONOR

So, you want to donate your eggs? Grab a seat.

If you’re reading this, you most likely (or maybe not) have heard about women who donate their eggs to TTC couples. You may ask, “why does one woman need to donate eggs to another? Doesn’t she have her own ovaries?”

Egg/oocyte donation is a process in which a fertile woman donates an egg, or oocyte, to another woman to help her conceive. It is a part of assisted reproductive technology or ART.

The procedure typically involves a doctor removing an egg or eggs from the donor, fertilizing them in an IVF laboratory, and then transferring the resulting embryos into the recipient’s uterus. Doctors do this using an implantation procedure, such as in-vitro fertilization (IVF).

Ideally, every woman is expected to have two ovaries fully loaded with about 1.2 million eggs at birth. The eggs reduce to a few hundred thousand by the time a woman attains puberty and by the age of 40, the ovarian reserve has significantly declined to about 5% or less, with lower quality eggs left in the ovaries.

In situations and peculiar cases where a woman is experiencing delays in conception and she has received a diagnosis that shows her eggs as being of poor quality or declined, the conversation of getting an oocyte donor comes up. Other reasons for being unable to use one’s eggs are damaged ovaries, congenital issues, chemotherapy/cancer treatment, menopause or poor response to ovarian stimulation during fertility treatment.

It may seem like a far stretch because the child however will have no genetic relationship with the mother, but the foundational truth of this practice is that one woman is helping another to achieve conception.

Are you considering being an egg donor? If yes, we want you to know that couples who are struggling to start a family would have a glimmer of hope. Donating eggs has been described as one of the most powerful and rewarding decisions a woman can make, and if you choose to be an egg donor, we are more than happy to guide you through.

We’ve itemized some of the minimum requirements to be a Bridge Clinic oocyte donor:

Between the ages of 21 and 28
Physically healthy
Have a BMI of 18-24.9kg/m2 (BMI Calculator)
AA Genotype
Non-Smoker
Have both ovaries
Psychologically healthy
No current use of psychoactive drugs
No history of substance abuse
No family history of inheritable genetic disorders
Willing to take injections
Willing to go through testing and screening
Dependable, mature, and able to keep appointments

If the above minimum donor egg requirements are met, please complete and submit the online application, please do well to contact us via:

• Lagos: 08104607746

• Abuja: 08104607760/43

• Port Harcourt: 08104607729

• Email: viva@thebridgeclinic.com

Sometimes, men need a (sperm/semen) donor too.

On the flip side, sometimes, some men have poor sperm quality azoospermia, oligospermia, or other conditions associated with male infertility. In situations like these, a fertility doctor can recommend the use of a healthy sperm donor.

Just like in the case of an oocyte donor, the child conceived via a donor sperm would have no genetic relationship with the father. If you are considering being a sperm donor, please note the following:

• Physically healthy

• Have a BMI of 18-24.9kg/m2 (BMI Calculator)

• AA Genotype

• Non-Smoker

• Psychologically healthy

• No current use of psychoactive drugs

• No history of substance abuse

• No family history of inheritable genetic disorders

• Willing to go through testing and screening

• Dependable, mature, and able to keep appointments

Think you fit the description as a potential sperm donor? Feel free to contact our laboratory team:

• Lagos: 08104607726

• Abuja: 08104607742

• Port Harcourt: 08104607786

On a final note...

When coming to the clinic as a donor, you are required to come with the following:

Means of Identification (International Passport, PVC, National ID, or Valid Drivers’ license)

Our team thanks you in advance for even considering being a donor with us, and we are ready to have you on board. Be rest assured that your privacy is respected and you will be treated with the utmost professionalism and care that everyone deserves.

Image credit: Reproductive health & wellness centre