Step By Step Process
1. Fill out the initial questionnaire
You may be interviewed over the telephone, or be sent an application which you must complete. Based on your responses, the program will decide whether you are likely or unlikely to be chosen. The chosen candidates may be invited to proceed with the selection process.
2. Complete the entire donor profile. You will be given a user name and password to complete an online questionnaire.
3. General medical screening: You will have a physical examination, including a pelvic exam. Blood tests will be performed to check your hormone levels. Ultrasound (which uses sound waves, not X rays) will be used to examine your uterus, ovaries and other pelvic organs. You will complete a detailed medical and psychological history about yourself and close blood relatives. It will include questions about your use of cigarettes, alcohol, and both prescription and illegal drugs.
4. Infectious disease screening: When blood or tissue is transferred from one person to another, it may carry viruses or bacteria. To minimize the risk that a donor egg could transmit an illness to the recipient, donors are tested for a variety of infections. During your pelvic exam, a cervical culture will be taken to test for gonorrhea and Chlamydia. Your blood will be obtained to test for syphilis, hepatitis B and C, and HTLV-1 (a rare virus that is associated with certain cancers) an a blood test to see if you have been exposed to HIV.
5. Screening for inherited disease: Our program tries to learn all we can about a donor's genetic history in order to minimize the chance that a baby will have a birth defect or serious inherited disease. You will be asked to provide your complete medical history along with information about your biological parents, grandparents, brothers and sisters. We will work with you to identify:
If any of your first or second degree relatives who have died, you will need to know their age and the cause of death. Some common diseases (such as cancer or heart disease) that strike when people are middle-aged or younger may be influenced in part by genetics.
If you do not have access to the necessary information, either because you are adopted or there is no informed person to ask, you should not become an egg donor.
PLEASE NOTE: If any of the screening tests are reactive (positive), you may not be eligible to donate eggs and you will be advised to seek medical care from your personal physician.
In our program, you will meet with a mental health professional to discuss your life circumstances, your support system, your feelings about the donation, and related issues.
Another goal of psychological screening is to make sure that you will fulfill the complex requirements of egg donation. Failure to follow instructions can endanger your health and jeopardize the procedure.
The whole process takes from 10 to 12 visits to our office during a span of about 8 months.