Egg freezing, also known as oocyte cryopreservation, is a process in which a womans eggs are extracted, frozen, and stored as a method to preserve reproductive potential in women of reproductive age. The process involves several steps, including:
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Ovarian Stimulation: The woman self-injects two to three hormone medications every day for 10-12 days to stimulate the ovaries to produce multiple eggs.
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Egg Retrieval: During a 15-minute surgical procedure, the doctor removes follicular fluid containing eggs from the ovaries while the woman is under mild sedation.
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Vitrification: After the eggs are harvested, they go through vitrification, a method of quickly putting eggs into a deep freeze. The mature eggs that were successfully collected are frozen through a process known as vitrification, which relies on rapid freezing through the use of liquid nitrogen to minimize the risk of ice crystals forming on the eggs, aiming to improve survival rates.
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Storage: The frozen eggs are stored in liquid nitrogen tanks in a secure storage facility.
Egg freezing can be considered for a variety of reasons, including women with cancer requiring chemotherapy and/or pelvic radiation therapy that may affect fertility, women who want to accomplish other life goals before starting a family, or women facing a medical procedure that could impact their fertility. Egg freezing is no longer considered an experimental procedure by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.
