March 19, 2024

The risks of freezing

The treasurer of a peak international fertility body has warned women not to rely on egg freezing to have children.

The treasurer of a peak international fertility body has warned women not to rely on egg freezing to have children. Dr Edgar Mocanu of the International Federation of Fertility Societies stated that current science does not support the supposition that egg freezing will allow women to circumvent infertility:

“As regards social freezing, the scientific community believes there are not yet sufficient data to recommend oocyte cryopreservation for the sole purpose of circumventing reproductive aging in healthy women”, he wrote in BioNews.

He urged women not to overestimate the utility of the novel procedure:

“There is no denial that egg freezing offers the hope of a pregnancy irrespective of the reason for the initial freeze. Yet, delaying conception while betting on the availability of self-preserved or donor frozen eggs is foolish. What every woman should understand is that while career or personal goals.”

Oocyte cryopreservation involves the harvesting of eggs from a woman’s ovaries and the freezing of those eggs so they can be used at a later date.

The relatively new procedure is highly controversial. Some seeing it as liberating women while others believe it is a risky quick fix for deeper social issues

Egg freezing unadvisable, says fertility expert
Xavier Symons
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