Once you’ve reached menopause, a woman’s hormone levels are no longer the same. LH (luteinizing hormone) and FSH (follicle-stimulating hormone) levels remain high and estrogen and progesterone levels remain low. After menopause, you will no longer ovulate and your ability to get pregnant with your own eggs becomes limited.
Although the number and quality of your eggs inevitably declines after menopause, there are still ways you can benefit from IVF in Cyprus. EuroCARE IVF patients have the ability to use frozen eggs (previously frozen) or donor eggs from our egg donor database.
In addition to egg donation, patients may consider Tandem IVF. This is a special type of IVF in Cyprus that allows you to use your own eggs along with eggs provided by an egg donor as a back-up plan. Embryo donation is also an option if you are trying to conceive after menopause. Our fertility specialists are available to discuss treatment options based on your personal circumstances.
Egg Donation in Cyprus
Egg donation in Cyprus is anonymous. Anonymous egg donation uses eggs donated by previously screened egg donors whose identity is not revealed.
At EuroCARE IVF, we take great care to maintain anonymity of both the donor and the recipient (you). Both parties may remain anonymous with each agreeing not to seek information about the other.
Potential egg donors must be between the ages of 20 and 28. All candidates are screened according to our guidelines before being accepted and added to our database. The various tests, including a physical exam, laboratory and genetic testing, assure good medical health and an absence of genetic diseases that could be passed onto the child.
Egg Donor Cyprus: Screening and Selection
Egg donors must be screened before they are allowed to take part in our egg donation program. The egg donor screening process includes medical, fertility and genetic examination. Once the candidate has completed the screening process, her profile will be uploaded into our database that is only viewable by patients who are in search of an egg donor.
The selection is usually done based on the physical characteristics, nationality and/or interests of the egg donor. For this reason, intended parents will be required to fill out a medical form to provide your photo or a list of physical attributes you desire in an egg donor. Depending on your criteria, you will be offered 3 to 5 egg donor profiles to help you choose the right one. After you select your egg donor, egg donation in Cyprus can begin.
Egg Donation Cyprus: Procedure
To help synchronize your cycle with that of the donor, our Cyprus fertility doctor will prescribe medications to suppress the donor’s natural cycle. Once the two cycles have been synchronized, the donor will start taking fertility drugs with hormones to stimulate her ovaries to produce multiple eggs.
During ovarian stimulation, the donor will be required to have blood tests and ultrasound scans on a regular basis. This will help our IVF Cyprus doctor to monitor the response of her ovaries to the medications and make an appropriate adjustment to the medication protocol.
While the egg donor is being prepared for the egg retrieval, you will start to take medications to prepare your uterus for the embryo transfer. Creating a favorable endometrial environment will help embryo(s) to attach to the wall of the uterus and establish a pregnancy.
Once the eggs are fully grown, the donor will undergo an ultrasound-guided egg retrieval procedure at our IVF clinic in Cyprus. The process takes about 15-20 minutes and is performed using moderate sedation.
The collected eggs are fertilized in our lab using a procedure called ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection). ICSI in Cyprus is performed by injecting individual healthy sperm cells into each egg. We use ICSI for all IVF treatments in Cyprus as it has proved to be the most effective method of fertilization.
The fertilized eggs (embryos) are transferred on day 3 or day 5 after egg retrieval. Embryo transfer on day 5 is called blastocyst transfer.
Embryo Donation in Cyprus
Embryo donation in Cyprus is an alternative path to parenthood that allows infertile couples to experience the joy of pregnancy and childbirth.
The embryos are a product of an egg and sperm donation in Cyprus. We use fresh donor eggs and combine them with frozen donor sperm provided by a reputable sperm bank. The resulting embryos are graded and selected for transfer. Any remaining embryos can be frozen and stored for future use.
Embryo Donation Cyprus: Process
Embryo donation in Cyprus is a form of third party assisted reproduction. The embryo donation process is similar to IVF in Cyprus.
The first important step in the embryo donation process is fertility testing. You will need to have the following fertility tests done before embryo donation in Cyprus:
- Hormone blood tests to assess your TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) and Prolactin levels
- HIV and Hepatitis B and C testing
- Trans-vaginal ultrasound scan to examine your womb for any abnormalities
If you are over 45, you will be required to provide a medical report from your doctor before coming to Cyprus. This report will provide us with information about your general health state.
After testing has been completed and donor eggs and sperm provided, fertilization will occur in the EuroCARE IVF lab in Cyprus by inserting single sperm cells into each egg. Our fertility doctor will advise you on the date for embryo transfer depending on the embryo development. Embryo transfer normally is performed at the blastocyst stage (day 17-19 of the cycle).
Embryo donation is performed by placing the donated embryos into your uterus. Twelve days after the embryo transfer, a beta hCG test will be carried out to determine if you are pregnant. If a positive pregnancy is established, future pregnancy check-ups will be performed by your local gynecologist.
Note: You will be recorded on the birth certificate as the legal mother of the child.
Cryopreservation in Cyprus
You have the option to freeze your eggs when you are most fertile, and fertilize and transfer them at a later date. Cryopreservation in Cyprus allows you to preserve your fertility and freeze eggs at an earlier age.
You have on average about 400,000 eggs at birth, and this supply decreases over time. This is part of the natural aging process. The decline in egg supply is accelerated during the late 30’s and early 40’s. Egg quality also declines with the increase in women’s age. Poor egg quality is a common cause of implantation failure and miscarriage.
Cryopreservation Cyprus: Procedure
The cryopreservation procedure is very similar to IVF in Cyprus with the aim to preserve and maintain the quality of your eggs.
Ovarian stimulation
The first step in the process is to produce multiple eggs for the egg retrieval procedure. Our fertility specialist will prescribe fertility medications to stimulate egg production. These medications are injected subcutaneously (beneath the skin).
During this time, your ovaries will be monitored on a regular basis to evaluate the growth and number of eggs you are producing. When the eggs are determined to be mature, you will receive a hCG injection, to prepare your ovaries for ovulation. The hCG injection trigger the final egg maturation.
Egg Retrieval
34 to 36 hours after the hCG shot, you will undergo a painless and short procedure, during which our doctor will retrieve the eggs from your ovaries. You will be under light sedation during the procedure. The egg retrieval is performed in our clinic and takes approximately 15 minutes.
Cryopreservation
The retrieved eggs are preserved through a rapid freezing process called vitrification. Vitrification is an advanced method of “flash freezing” that cools cells so quickly to -196ºC that they become “glass-like”. Vitrification is completed within a few minutes.
Thawing
When you decide you are ready to use the frozen eggs, they will be thawed in our lab. The thawing is a fast procedure that is performed on the day when your eggs are fertilized. Thawing must be synchronized with your cycle. Over 90% of frozen eggs survive the freeze-thaw process.
Fertilization
Thawed eggs are fertilized in our lab in a procedure called Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) in which a single sperm cell is injected directly into the cytoplasm of each egg. ICSI in Cyprus is especially effective for eggs that were previously frozen because the membrane is hardened by the freezing process.
Once the eggs have been fertilized, they will be cultured for 3 to 5 days in our lab. Embryos are graded for quality and selected for transfer.
Embryo Transfer
Before embryo transfer, our doctor will discuss with you the quality of embryos and the number recommended for transfer. The decision will be made primarily based on your age at the time the eggs were frozen. Our doctor will transfer the embryos using a catheter and an abdominal ultrasound for visualization. The transfer is similar to a Pap smear and does not require any anesthesia or sedation. The procedure takes about 15 minutes.
Embryo Freezing
Any remaining good quality embryos may be frozen for future use. Embryo freezing is safe and will allow you to do another transfer in the future.
FET (Frozen Embryo Transfer) Cyprus
You may choose to undergo IVF treatment in Cyprus and have your own eggs fertilized with your partner’s (or donor) sperm. The fertilized eggs, now called embryos, will be frozen and stored for future use. Alternatively, embryos may be created during a combined egg and sperm donation cycle.
FET Cyprus Process
Frozen embryo transfer (FET) in Cyprus is performed with hormonal support. You will take medications to control and suppress your natural cycle. Blood tests and ultrasound scans are carried out to determine the response of your ovaries.
Next, you will be prescribed estrogen supplementation to help you grow a healthy uterine lining for implantation. During this time, you will be monitored through blood tests and ultrasound scans. Progesterone will soon be added.
The embryo transfer will be scheduled based on the date when progesterone supplementation was started, the thickness of the uterine lining, and at what stage the embryo was cryopreserved.
Embryo transfer is the final step in which embryos are placed into the womb using a catheter with the intent to establish a pregnancy. A regular hCG test will be done 12 days post transfer to check the results. You will be referred to your local doctor for prenatal care.
Learn more about the do’s and don’ts after an embryo transfer.
Tandem IVF Cyprus
Tandem IVF is a special type of IVF treatment in Cyprus that is recommended for women over 40. IVF involves producing and retrieving multiple eggs, fertilization of the eggs with your partner’s (or donor) sperm, and transferring the embryo(s) in your womb. Tandem IVF uses an additional set of eggs provided by an egg donor in case your eggs fail to fertilize or to grow into good quality embryos.
Donor eggs are fertilized simultaneously when your own eggs are combined with the sperm in our lab and cultured for a few days. The two sets of embryos are graded for quality and selected for transfer.
Tandem Cycle IVF
Tandem IVF follows the same steps as the ones in a conventional IVF treatment. You will take fertility medications to produce multiple eggs for retrieval. On day 9, you’ll fly to Cyprus where you will proceed with your treatment. The ovaries will be scanned to assess the growth of your eggs. Once the eggs are ready, you will be scheduled the egg retrieval 34 to 36 hours after the trigger shot at the EuroCARE IVF clinic in Cyprus.
While you are preparing your ovaries for the egg retrieval, your egg donor will go through a similar process of ovarian stimulation. With the use of hormonal injections, the donor will be able to produce multiple eggs. When ready, the eggs from your donor will be collected at the clinic.
Your and your donor’s eggs will be fertilized using ICSI (Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection) by which single sperm cells will be injected directly into each collected egg.
Our egg donors are young, healthy women between the ages of 20 and 28 from whom we retrieve 10 to 12 M2 (mature) grade one eggs for fertilization. Donor eggs will be used for implantation as a back-up plan.
Tandem IVF gives you the possibility to try one last time to get pregnant with your own eggs, and if your cycle fails, embryos that were created by combining healthy donor eggs with your partner’s (or donor) sperm will selected for transfer.
All potential egg donors undergo a thorough screening process before they are allowed to take part in our egg donation program. After an official match is done between you and the egg donor, the Tandem IVF treatment can begin with synchronizing the two cycles for optimal results.
Getting pregnant after menopause at EuroCARE IVF
Pregnancy after menopause has over recent years become possible and more easily achieved due to recent advances in assisted reproductive technology, in particular egg donation. At EuroCARE IVF, there are many options available if you desire to have a child after menopause and fulfill your family building dreams. Seek advice from our fertility doctor to help you make a well-informed decision about your next treatment in Cyprus.