"Studies suggest that women who freeze their eggs before age 35 have a better chance of a successful pregnancy than those who freeze their eggs after age 35." This is because the more eggs retrieved and frozen, the better the chance of a successful pregnancy.
Studies show that age 37 is the ideal time for egg freezing. Women with frozen eggs at this age are twice as likely to get pregnant than those with none. From 37 and above, the clinic will have to extract as many eggs as possible. Women over 40 will need well over 20 eggs for just a 50% chance of success.
For example, if you are 37 years old, you should freeze at least 10 eggs in order to attain the highest chance of having a child. If you are 38 years old, you should aim to freeze 16 eggs to reach the same chance of having a baby.
Every woman is different regarding the effects of age on her fertility, keep in mind; some women into their early 40s do not suffer infertility. However, most experts agree that elective egg freezing is most successful for woman younger than 38 years of age.
There is no actual age limit or cutoff for freezing your eggs, although the potential of those eggs turning into a live birth reduces in the 40s. According to research, women who are under age 36 when freezing their eggs have a 95% survival rate for their eggs once they are thawed.
When the procedure is performed above this age, the chances of successful livebirth are significantly reduced. Previous research and advice has recommended that women should freeze their eggs before the age of 35, with emphasis placed on the number of good eggs successfully frozen.
Pregnancy rates are lower from eggs frozen after the age of 35 so it is often recommended to freeze eggs much earlier. For women wishing to delay fertility after forty years of age, using donated eggs from a younger woman is often advised.
Deciding how many eggs to freeze
Women under 35 should freeze 20 mature eggs for an 85% chance of having at least one child. Women 38 to 40 should freeze 30 mature eggs for a 75% chance of having at least one child. Women 40 to 42 should freeze 30 mature eggs for a 50% chance of having at least one child.
Cost of egg freezing
At IVF Australia, an Elective Egg Freezing Cycle costs $6,000. This includes cycle management, surgeon's fee, initial freeze and first six months' storage (up to 10 eggs retrieved).
“By 43, 90% of a woman's eggs are abnormal, which means they don't have the potential for pregnancy.” Women who freeze their eggs before age 40 have a greater likelihood of achieving pregnancy with those eggs in the future.
Incorporate whole grains, lean meats, leafy greens, fresh vegetables, fruit and nuts in your diet to give your body what it needs to support your eggs. Avoid processed foods and meats when possible and limit your salt and sugar intake.
Freezing methods and lab quality
“Slow frozen eggs” have an average thawing survival rate of 61%, but eggs that were frozen using the “flash freezing”/vitrification technique do much better, with an average 90% to 95% rate of survival. SCRC's Chief Science Officer, Dr.
Women under 35 who freeze 10-20 eggs have a 70-90% chance of at least one live birth. If they undergo another cycle and increase the number of eggs frozen to 20, their chances jump to 90%
Amy Schumer's IVF cycle resulted in one viable embryo even though 35 eggs were retrieved after simulation, she revealed via an Instagram post on Saturday. The comedienne is upbeat and feels lucky to have one good embryo but also realizes the steep drop from the number of eggs.
If you're freezing your eggs for elective purposes – it's not covered by Medicare. Egg freezing isn't covered by private health insurance, but if your policy covers assisted reproductive services it might cover some costs like hospital fees, doctor or anaesthetist fees and other associated costs.
A study in the journal Fertility and Sterility found it was more cost-effective for a woman to freeze her eggs at age 35 and use them to get pregnant in her 40s, rather than try to conceive naturally at that age.
Egg retrieval doesn't affect your future fertility. So, many women donate eggs before having children of their own, later on. Or, you might freeze eggs to protect your future fertility and still have a natural pregnancy first.
The data in the graph above shows that:
Women under 38 in our IVF program have acceptable live birth rates even with only 3 – 6 eggs, do better with more than 6 eggs, and do best with more than 10 eggs. Women 38-40 and 41-42 years old have low live birth rates with low egg numbers.
If she'd always dreamt of a big family, she should consider freezing 25 eggs, for over a 1 in 2 chance of having three children. (Of course, keep in mind that baby #1 might be conceived naturally, so she might only need to use her frozen eggs for the second or third child.)
For women of 39 years of age, chances are further halved compared to the 36-year-old. In some cases, egg quality is better than expected from the woman's age, but in some cases unfortunately worse.
For example, a woman at 30 often has around 100,000-150,000 eggs in reserve. By 35, that number is likely around 80,000. Late into the thirties, that number could be 25,000, 10,000, or fewer.
In addition to being expensive, egg freezing can also be uncomfortable and inconvenient. A woman needs to take injectable medicines to stimulate egg production for 10 to 12 days, and to have repeated blood tests and ultrasounds. Finally, the eggs need to be retrieved during an in-office procedure.
To give yourself the highest chances of success, we typically recommend freezing your eggs in your late 20s or early 30s. However, if you're diagnosed with an illness that may decrease the quality and quantity of your eggs, you might want to consider freezing your eggs even sooner.
Finally, it's important to be aware that the egg freezing process can be emotionally stressful. This is especially true if you are undergoing treatment for a medical condition that could affect your fertility. It's important to have a support system in place during this time to help you through the process.