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Donation Process

Donating your eggs is one of life’s most generous acts.  Although most people donate their eggs for altruistic reasons, as an egg donor, you will be compensated for your time and effort.

Please contact us on 0837616961 if you would like to become a donor.

Requirements to become an egg donor:

  • You must be between the ages of 19 and 30
  • You must have a normal BMI
  • You must have no family history of bipolar disorder or schizophrenia
  • You are compensated R7 000 each time you donate

Egg donation is anonymous. The legislation in South Africa on egg donation is published in Chapter 8 of the National Health Act (Act no 61 of 2003).  Your identity as a donor and that of your recipients are strictly confidential, and we never disclose your personal details or name.

Steps:

Step 1

You can start the egg donation process by filling in your details in the contact form and we will contact you.

Step 2

You will be invited for a meeting with one of our egg donor representatives at your convenience, and a place of your choosing, to discuss the process in person. This will be an opportunity for you to ask as many questions as you wish.

Step 3

After our meeting, you will be required to fill out an application form if you are interested in proceeding. This application form will include your family medical history, your physical characteristics as well as your personality profile. This application will allow us to draw up an anonymous donor profile for you.

Step 4

Once your application form for egg donation has been approved, the next step is to go for your medical screening. This includes an ultrasound, a psychological evaluation, as well as a genetic and hormone screening. This medical screening will give you valuable insight into your current health status at no cost to you. You will also see our psychologist or social worker, as we would like the process to be a fulfilling one, not just for the recipient of your eggs, but for you as well. This is done at no cost to you.

Step 5

Once all your testing and screening is complete, you will be officially accepted onto our egg donation programme.

Step 6

After you have been accepted onto our egg donation programme, prospective recipients will be able to view your donor profile. When a recipient selects you, our egg donor coordinator will be in contact with you to confirm that you are available to donate the month in which the recipient would like to have treatment.

Step 7

The final step is the preparation for the egg donation cycle. During the donation cycle, you will visit the clinic around four times over a two week period leading up to your egg retrieval. For further details, refer to our FAQs.

Further details will be discussed during the screening process and information sessions. Your comfort and safety is our top concern

The egg donation procedure refers to the process during which a woman donates eggs to another woman (recipient) who is unable to conceive a baby. This is done by means of a procedure known as In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF). The actual fertilisation of the eggs is done in the laboratory before they are placed in the recipient’s womb.

Egg donors are first screened by our egg donor coordinator and a medical doctor who specialises in the field of reproductive medicine. Once a donor has been chosen to donate by a recipient, the donor will undergo IVF stimulation therapy prior to the egg retrieval procedure. After the eggs have been retrieved, the eggs (ova), are then fertilised with sperm that has been donated by a sperm donor, or a husband or partner of the recipient. This part is done in the laboratory.

After several days the doctor will choose the best embryo(s) resulting from the number of eggs that were fertilised. By this time, the recipient would have started medication around the same time that her egg donor started hers.  The embryo will then be transferred into the recipient’s womb.

Medication Used

It’s important to know what medication and possible side effects are used during this process.  Below is an outline of what will be used in the procedure. Remember, it’s always best to discuss the medication with your doctor, and to talk about any possible side effects so that you are properly informed and prepared should you experience anything untoward.

When instructed to self inject medication, our team of medical staff will give you full instructions on how to do this. They will also  advise you on the methods most comfortable for you. We are also available 24/7 should you have any questions regarding your medication.

 

As an egg donor, you will be prescribed the following medications:

Follicle Stimulating Hormones (FSH or Gonadotropins)

Some common drugs include Gonal F or Menopur. Your doctor will typically recommend one injection daily for approximately ten days. FSH is a natural hormone that a woman’s body produces. This hormone matures the eggs within the ovaries when she is on her reproductive cycle. The eggs in the ovary sit in a sac that is called a follicle. During egg donation treatment, FSH medication is given so that many sacs develop, and as a result, more eggs. The more follicles in the ovaries, the greater the chance of a successful outcome.

Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG or “Trigger shot”)

Some common drug names include Ovittrel or Lucrin. One injection will be administered approximately 34 hours prior to the retrieval of eggs. hCG is a pregnancy hormone that the human placenta naturally produces.  The reason hCG is given prior to egg retrieval is to mature the eggs. Once the follicles are the correct size, the the egg inside needs to mature or ripen. Administering hCG medication will make this happen. It is important that this medication is administered because the eggs will not be usable without it.

Once the injection period is completed, the follicle stimulating hormones (FSH)will be given to stimulate the egg production. This should increase the number of eggs that are mature in the ovaries. As the donor, you will be monitored by your doctor through this whole cycle. You will undergo blood tests and ultrasound examination, as this will indicate the progress of the follicle growth. Your doctor will decide when the follicles are mature enough, and will then book a date and time for the egg retrieval procedure.

Once your doctor has decided that the follicles are mature, the egg retrieval procedure will take place two days later. The actual egg retrieval procedure itself is a minimally invasive procedure that will last about twenty to thirty minutes. It is performed at our clinic under conscious sedation, so you won’t feel anything. Your doctor will insert a small ultrasound guided needle through the vagina, which will aspirate the follicles on both ovaries, so that the eggs can be extracted.  After the procedure, you can rest in our comfortable recovery room for about an hour before you are released to go home. You will not be able to drive afterwards, as you might still be sleepy from the anaesthetic, so please arrange for someone to take you home. You can resume normal activities the next day.