The clinical director of Tasmania’s only fertility service says the number of women inquiring about freezing their eggs due to their career or relationship status has noticeably grown in the last six months.
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TasIVF’s Dr Bill Watkins said the amount of women who chose to go through with freezing their eggs for social reasons was still low – “in the tens” – but said he expected that number to increase.
“We get quite a few people inquiring but not many people go ahead with it, but that’s going to change,” he said.
“It’s happening quite a bit on the mainland now and that will drift down.”
Egg freezing is a three-week process which draws on the first half on an IVF cycle.
Fertility doctors stimulate the ovaries to collect multiple eggs and then freeze them.
The procedure costs between $8000 and $10,000 depending on the woman’s age and the dose of drugs required. Ongoing storage costs about $300 a year.
Using self-described “rubbery figures”, Dr Watkins estimated about 15 per cent of people would use their frozen eggs with half of those resulting in babies.
That meant that for every 100 women who froze their eggs, about seven and a half babies would be born, he said.
“You’ve got to say ok, is this medically worthwhile doing, and in the end it comes down to individual choice,” Dr Watkins said.
“Women have to decide whether that is something they want to do for that expense with that amount of medical intervention for that chance of a baby.
“It’s like an insurance policy you hope you never have to cash in, and if you do, it may not work anyway.”
Most women who inquire about egg freezing are aged between 35 and 40. Most women are asked to undertake a blood test to determine their ovarian reserve and advised accordingly.
“A lot of women I’ve been able to talk out of it,” Dr Watkins said. “You’re never going to be 100 per accurate but they’re asking for my advice, my experience, and often that is you probably don’t need to freeze eggs.
“We’d prefer to see them 30 to 35, but ... they’re not thinking they need to at that point. If you’re going to do it, the earlier the better.”
University of Tasmania sociology lecturer Meredith Nash said egg freezing gave women options but said she held reservations about workplaces championing the procedure.
“This idea that egg freezing is going to be the golden solution is ridiculous,” Dr Nash said. “Flexible parental leave, childcare availability, men and fathers having to be held accountable for sharing responsibilities – that stuff is what is going to change decisions around women’s fertility.”
