BUT THERE’S NO REGULATION IN PLACE YET
Very few centres are doing egg freezing. We are seeing two to five cases a month. The number would rise with more women being in the workforce and many opting for higher-level jobs. There are also unmarried women who want to preserve their eggs and use them at a later stage in life. DR SAHIL GUPTA, Infertility specialists
There is no proper law in place governing egg freezing procedures in the country. Hence, if donor eggs are used in IVF procedures, only the embryologist and the infertility specialist are aware of the changes effected in the laboratory.
A senior infertility specialist on condition of anonymity explained, “A good embryologist has to not only maintain ethical standards but also confide to the couple in case the sperms and eggs are not of good quality. But, there are often commercial interests driving these cases and these are giving a bad name to the procedures.”
Lack of proper law to govern scientific advances often leaves patients in the lurch in case of wrongdoing. The Indian Council of Medical Research insists that ethical methods must be followed and the couple must be aware in case donor egg or donor sperm is used. In most cases, either one partner or both are not aware of the switch. It’s only a suspicious couple who would undergo a DNA test to verify their parent age.
The Assisted Reproductive Techniques Regulation Bill is ready for the last nine years but it has still not been approved. The bill will regulate establishments like infertility clinics, sperm and egg banks and check on these unethical practices of transferring eggs without consent. A senior gynaecologist explained, “Till the bill is passed, regulation is going to be difficult. After that, a lot of clinics will disappear as they are not practising as per the guidelines set by ICMR.”
Eggs are frozen for 8 to 10 years but can be stored for longer.
Not all frozen eggs are success stories. Failure rates are high according to documentary evidence collected by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in 2013.