Egg freezing, or oocyte cryopreservation, allows individuals to preserve their unfertilized eggs for later use. The procedure involves retrieving, cooling, and storing eggs. Its goal is to provide flexibility regarding reproductive timing.
Preserving eggs at a younger age can mitigate the natural decline in fertility. This offers a proactive approach for those delaying childbearing for personal or medical reasons. Frozen eggs can then be thawed, fertilized, and transferred to the uterus for pregnancy.
How Fertility Changes With Age
A woman’s fertility naturally declines with age, a biological reality driven by changes in both the quantity and quality of her eggs. Females are born with their entire lifetime supply of eggs, and this ovarian reserve steadily diminishes over the years. The most significant decline in egg quantity typically begins around the mid-30s.
Beyond quantity, the quality of eggs also decreases with advancing age. Older eggs are more prone to chromosomal abnormalities, a condition known as aneuploidy. This increase in aneuploidy rates contributes to lower fertilization rates, reduced embryo viability, and a higher risk of miscarriage and chromosomal disorders in offspring. For instance, the risk of aneuploidy in eggs significantly rises after age 35, becoming more pronounced after age 40. This decline means that even if conception occurs, the chances of a healthy live birth decrease. Understanding these changes provides the foundation for determining when egg preservation might be most beneficial.
Optimal Age for Freezing Eggs
Considering the biological changes in egg quantity and quality, the generally recommended age range for egg freezing is from the late 20s through the early to mid-30s. Freezing eggs within this window offers the best balance between preserving a sufficient number of high-quality eggs and the practical considerations of future family planning.
For instance, freezing eggs around age 30 to 34 is often cited as an optimal period because egg quality is still relatively high, and a good number of eggs can typically be retrieved in one cycle. The probability of having a live birth from eggs frozen at age 30 is considerably higher than from eggs frozen at age 40. While freezing eggs in the late 20s might yield the highest quality eggs, many individuals may not be considering fertility preservation at that early stage.
The benefits of freezing eggs begin to diminish significantly after age 35, and especially after age 38, due to the accelerated decline in egg quality and quantity. Although egg freezing is still an option for individuals in their late 30s or early 40s, more cycles may be needed to retrieve an adequate number of viable eggs, and the success rates per egg are lower.
Other Considerations for Egg Freezing
Beyond biological age, several other factors influence an individual’s decision to pursue egg freezing. Financial implications are a significant consideration, as the procedure involves substantial costs for medication, retrieval, cryopreservation, and annual storage fees. These expenses can vary widely by clinic and location, often ranging from $10,000 to $20,000 per cycle, excluding storage.
Personal circumstances also play a substantial role, including career aspirations, relationship status, and the desire to achieve certain life milestones before starting a family. Individuals may choose egg freezing to align their reproductive timeline with professional development or to find a suitable partner. Medical reasons, such as impending cancer treatment (like chemotherapy or radiation) that could damage ovarian function, or a family history of early menopause, often prompt individuals to consider egg preservation to protect future fertility.
What to Expect From Egg Freezing
The egg freezing process typically begins with ovarian stimulation, where injectable hormones are administered for about 8 to 14 days to encourage multiple eggs to mature simultaneously. Regular monitoring through blood tests and ultrasounds tracks the growth of the egg-containing follicles. Once the follicles reach an appropriate size, a trigger shot is given to induce final egg maturation.
Approximately 36 hours after the trigger shot, the egg retrieval procedure is performed. This minimally invasive outpatient procedure involves inserting a thin needle, guided by ultrasound, through the vaginal wall to aspirate fluid from the follicles and collect the eggs. The retrieved eggs are then immediately assessed for maturity and cryopreserved using a flash-freezing technique called vitrification, which minimizes ice crystal formation and improves egg survival rates upon thawing.
While egg freezing offers promise, it is important to have realistic expectations regarding success rates. The probability of a live birth from frozen eggs depends heavily on the age at which the eggs were frozen and the number of viable eggs retrieved and stored. For instance, a woman under 35 may achieve a live birth rate of 40-50% with 10-15 frozen eggs, while a woman over 38 may need more eggs to achieve similar rates. Success is not guaranteed, and factors like the quality of the eggs upon thawing, fertilization rates, and embryo development all contribute to the final outcome.