Finding the Right Donor

To conceive through surrogacy, you need to choose an egg donor. Egg donors are classified as either “known” or “unknown” depending on the type of relationship you have with them.

• Known donation: this is where a relative or friend is willing to undergo IVF procedures to provide the eggs. The advantages of having a known donor are that the genetic origin is known and the waiting time for treatment is significantly reduced. Remember, there is an increased risk of problems if a donor is over the age of 35, including miscarriage and the risk of chromosomal abnormalities (e.g. Down syndrome). If the surrogate consents to receiving eggs from a donor in these circumstances, treatment will be at the clinicians’ discretion.

• Clinic-recruited donation (unknown):  this is where an individual generously volunteers to undergo IVF procedures to provide their eggs to another individual. In the case of clinic-recruited donation, the recipient does not know the donor and the donor’s identity may remain unknown to the recipient. However, a donor must consent to release identifying information (name, date of birth, address) to a donor-conceived child, either when they reach 18 years or have acquired sufficient maturity to appreciate the significance of the request (NHMRC 2007).

We can offer treatments involving both known and unknown egg donors, both following a thorough process of preparation. This process involves comprehensive medical assessment, detailed screening, consent forms, and counselling of all parties involved in the egg donation.

All clinic-recruited egg donors are required to meet with the specialist to ensure they are medically suitable for the egg donor program. Some of the tests performed by the specialist during the medical review may include screening tests, pelvic ultrasound and Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) test.

Egg donors are required to undergo an IVF cycle in order to retrieve the eggs. Prior to this procedure, egg donors will be asked to attend an information session with a fertility coordinator. During this session, they are informed about the type of treatment, the risks of the procedure, lifestyle recommendations and other requirements.

Who can be an Egg Donor?

Individuals of all ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds can become egg donors. This includes individuals of all different heights, shapes and sizes, as long as they meet the prerequisites below:

• Aged 21-32 years.  No egg donor will be accepted for clinic-recruited donation over the age of 32.
• Good health with no history of hereditary disease. Donors will not be accepted if they suffer from an illness, disease or genetic condition that poses an unacceptable risk of being passed on to any child conceived from the donation.
• Individuals who are adopted cannot donate unless genetic family history is known.
• Marital or relationship status, gender identity, intersex status: If married or in a defacto relationship, the partner must consent to the donation. Where a married couple is separated but not divorced, it is strongly recommended that the partner consents to the procedure.
• Unknown donors must have a permanent address and be contactable for follow-up screening. They must be able to provide three identifiers and proof of permanent address, e.g. driver’s licence, photo ID, passport.
• All donors (and their partners) must complete two counselling sessions.