Hello!

I am 43 and in the last 3 years have done 6 IVFs with my own eggs, one DE-IVF and one DE-FET. We had one unassisted pregnancy that ended in a missed m/c and one c/p with my own egg. From all the testing, the only issue we were supposed to have been facing was my poor quality eggs and more recently 3% morph. In addition to assumed standard tests from our REs we have done a DFI (nothing notable), basic clotting and immune screens (elevated PAI-1 and one MTHFR mutation), a lap and HSC, and several SHGs. Even though I have no glaring immune issues we are currently considering switching clinics to a more immune-friendly environment and working with a RI; we have our consult with the latter next month. We are lucky to have two more traditionally frozen blasts (4BB each) but are also looking into another fresh DE cycle. Our biggest hurdle has been finding an appropriate inhouse program that fits our donor profile requirements with a reputable clinic as we prefer to go this route rather than use an agency. To say that we are heartbroken and devastated by all this is an understatement. The prospect of having to go through another donor cycle has been extremely difficult. We can only hope that it will be worth it in the end.

I hope that my experiences can be useful to others and I look forward to getting to know you ladies and picking up a few things along the way.

e.

May your stay here be short! I've been here for over two years but recently graduated to the pink board after switching to the guarantee program at SG.

Thank you and congratulations! I know that may couples are very happy with SG's program and they are on our inquiry list.

Welcome...this has been a great resource to me as I have also failed 1 fresh and 2 FET with donor eggs in the last month. We did try intralipids, steroids etc as I do have slightly elevated ANA. We also switched clinics to CCRM which has very high success rates and a guarantee program (and a special if you use their vitrified eggs). Just completed the ODWU which was overwhelming but much more detail oriented than our last clinic. They do not treat immune issues aggressively however although I will likely be on prednisone for a short time. I am also 43 and kind of thought once we moved to DE we should be pregnant without this much difficulty.

Make that 3 failed cycles in the last 6 months.....oops

CCRM has great stats. I didn't know they had a frozen egg bank. When I spoke with them they were really great, but they said there was pretty much no chance that they had an inhouse donor in my race, let alone in the ethnic backgrounds that we were hoping for. I'm glad the ODWU is behind you and hope that the results are good.

It's exceptionally frustrating when the onus of bad eggs is not solved by DE, especially when you go in thinking you had done your due diligence and the cycle itself goes well. I hope you find the CCRM approach to bring you success and I look forward to your updates. We really hope to use an inhouse program but perhaps we need to be open to that option. Best of luck for us all.

There may be someone here who could offer you some guidance on clinics and donor pools who might be able to meet your needs...

Yes, any suggestions are welcome. Japanese or Korean are first choices, then other asian nationalities with a good physical match. We have been in touch with SDFC, ORM, RBA, CCRM and AF, as well as four NYC clinics since they are our closest options. Thank you!

Any one with CNY donor access donor 46852 looks Korean/part to me? I am unable to access profile only pictures.

I have had access to CNY's bank since October, 2011. I have NEVER seen a single Asian donor come up in that time. Donor 46852 is not Korean or even Asian. She is part African-American and Irish. She does however look like she has some features that look like she might be part Asian. However, a review of teh rest of her photos clearly reveals that she is not Asian.

SDFC had an acceptable option however her previous cycle produced only 5 embryos which makes me hesitate. We are willing to wait for a donor but not indefinitely. Thank you both for looking into the options there.

Dee, are you also looking for an asian donor? Good luck with RBA. My friend had twin girls from her frozen cycle there and had lots of good things to say about her experience.

You are very welcome. I am looking for an African-American donor but always take note of the diverse donors of all races on databases. I have heard that the selection of black, hispanic, Asian and Jewish donors is more plentiful if you go through an agency. Not sure if you looked into agencies or not but that might be an option. I would have thought that there would be more Asian donors on the west coast. That is great about your friend that went to RBA. Good luck!! I hope you find THE perfect donor.

I have had access to CNY donor pictures since 2007, and in that time there have been only 2 or 3 asian donors so not never, but rare.

Of east Asian donors there? We have substantial populations of Korean, Vietnamese, and Chinese immigrants in the DC area, so I'm going to speculate that there would be greater availability in their donor base. It's unsurprising that CNY would not have a big donor base of any non-white ethnicities given its location (although there are surprising pockets of immigrants all around the country). Although I notice that GIVF, also in the D.C. area and about 1.5 mi. from little Korea, which allows the public to search its database, only has 3 or 4 east Asian donors (and why do they lump all "Asians" together? Do people in Iraq look like people in China?).

Also, are you west coast? Would you consider going overseas for treatment? It might be cheaper and give you a greater donor base.

GL!

Maggie (in VA)

Thank you Maggie. I was told that an agency would be my best option as there was a waitlist; they can't discuss specifics until I was officially one of their patients and ready to cycle. We are located in NYC but I have family on the west coast and would consider traveling to cycle, however probably not out of the country. If we do a fresh cycle if would be after a fresh DE and 2 FET cycles, and we don't just want to do things the same old way and get the same old bad luck speech. Guarantee programs, enlisting an RI, or working with a clinic with stellar stats and high FET success rates are all increasingly attractive when a more conventional DE approach fails.

If you care to share race or ethnic background some might be able to recomend.

We ended up going to CCRM but not using one of their donors, instead using a donor from an agency. Their screening was pretty thorough, for both me and the donor (she had donated there for a past cycle so had already met some requirements and knew the routine). We were just so sick and tired of failures at our other clinic and thought maybe CCRM could figure out why. Their testing uncovered nothing new, but the cycle went so much better than at the previous clinic (this same donor had been with us at the previous clinic too).

Are you mid cycle? If so I hope it continues to go well and ends well. An agency very well may be what we may need to do even though it's not our first choice. Thank y for sharing.

The cycle at CCRM worked and I am in the third trimester. It was a better experience all around than at my old clinic: the donor stimmed better, and the resulting blasts looked better. We only tx one embryo instead of 2 or 3 like I had previously done. I dropped the intralipids/IVIg treatments I had done for many failed DE cycles. CCRM wanted me to add a vitamin D supplement and a specific type of acupuncture, those were easy enough (I was delighted that these were the only issues they could find "wrong" after extensive testing, and they truly felt it was an embryo issue with the old clinic).

I saw the list of clinics you have spoken to and it looks excellent, and looks like you have done your research on high stat places good with frozens. For us it was worth all the travel and expense to upgrade from our former clinic.

I worry about what that price tag would be for us, especially cycling from out of state. It's an inspirational story and I'm glad to hear it went so well for you.

As others have said, may your stay here be short. I'm sorry to hear what you've been through. It's such a grueling ride, this IF journey.

I'm fairly new here myself, am participating in the shared risk plan at Shady Grove. I haven't even had a transfer yet (coming up in a couple weeks), so I'm can't comment on successes, etc. But my experience with them so far has been positive. I will say their donor pool is not very extensive, particularly for Asian donors. (I'm Caucasian.) I think if you have a frank discussion with their donor coordinator, they'll give you a sense of how likely it is they'll have a match for you.

Anyway, welcome and good luck!

Hope you find the same support I have found here. This is a great bunch of ladies!

TTC for 3.5 yrs from age 27
4 rounds on clomifene
2 MC
About to start IVF when...
DD OE 3.5yrs old now
TTC 2.5 yrs for #2
2 rounds of clomifene
1 MC
Dx with DOR Jan 2012
Using DE from sister possibly