The planning phase of my fertility adventure has begun and foremost in my mind is the question of cost. However, I think it’s important to relay a little more about the process of ‘fertility preservation’, so I’ll run through both.
First, let’s look at pricing.
The range seems to be anywhere from $8,000 to $18,000 baseline, plus the cost of medications and annual storage fees. For the clinic I’m currently working with, the baseline price is $9,000 to $13,000 (not including medications) for one round of harvesting and an initial year of storage.
I’ll need to plan on an additional $3,000 to $5,000 for medications during the process and another $450 per year (after the first year) to keep my ladies in the deep freeze. So I’m looking at an investment of $12,000 to $18,000 as insurance doesn’t cover elective fertility preservation. (It may, however, cover it in cases where the patient is about to undergo chemo or other treatments that pose a risk to future fertility.) About $2,000 of that will be payable through my Flexible Savings Account ($2,000 is the balance I have right now), but the rest will likely have to be financed.
While you’re getting over your sticker shock, let’s talk about the actual process. In a little over a month I’ll have an initial fertility assessment to determine if I’m a good candidate for preservation. This exam is the only thing that my insurance may cover. If I were to pay for it out of my own funds it would cost me approximately $750 and eat up part of that savings account balnce. It is not included in the $9,000 - $13,000 baseline estimate above.
That buys me access to a reproductive endocrinologist (an ob-gyn with a fertility specialization) and a fertility counselor, blood work to check hormone levels and other factors, as well as a possible ultrasound to assess the current state of my ovaries. I’m required to go off birth control pills for at least 30 days before that appointment so they don’t mask any issues and so I’ll have an ovulation cycle under my belt.
If my ovaries pass their exam, I can either choose to begin the stimulation/harvesting process immediately or determine a start date some time in the future. One thing to note, however, is that women closer to 35 and over will have to repeat the assessment exam if the doctor feels too much time has passed which, depending on your age, could be a year or just a couple of months.
The next phase of the procedure is relatively short—just one ovulation cycle—but meticulously choreographed and monitored every step of the way. I’ll begin by giving myself daily injections (!) of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and a possible cocktail of other medications; this is similar to what a woman preparing for IVF, in vitro fertilization, would undergo.
The meds will cause my body to grow multiple eggs instead of choosing just one lucky girl to go to the dance. During this time, I’ll visit the clinic every 1-3 days for regular ultrasounds. Doctors will determine how many eggs my ovaries are producing and whether they are growing at an acceptable rate, adjusting my dose of FSH as needed to hit that perfect size at just the right time.
This is a part of the process that can be a bit frustrating especially for the over 35 crowd. Despite being a good candidate, there is the possibility that the number of eggs a woman produces in one cycle won’t meet the recommended storage count. If a woman is able to produce 8 – 12 eggs (and of course the more the merrier), then she has a good chance of being able to thaw enough viable eggs for use in the future. (I’ll discuss that side of the story next time.) Fewer than that and she’ll need to consider another round of FSH and harvesting—and another $12,000 to $18,000 out-of-pocket.
Regardless of the number, when the eggs reach the appropriate size an appointment will be scheduled to go in and harvest them. This is an outpatient procedure done under ‘twilight sedation’, not general anesthesia, and takes approximately 30 minutes with an hour of recovery time. The eggs are then immediately assessed for viability and the mature ones are frozen on the spot. They are sent to the storage facility the same day where they’ll stay until I decide to use them.
The procedure itself is said to be relatively pain free, as evidenced from the quick recovery time, though the weeks leading up to harvest can be uncomfortable. Since I’ll be pumping myself chock full of hormones, it’s very likely I’ll experience side-effects similar to a really bad period. Cramping, nausea, breakthrough bleeding, etc. are all par for the course. Those will subside as soon as the injections stop and the drugs leave my body.
Knowing all the facts, my mind still wanders back to the unholy price tag. It goes without saying that the cost of egg freezing is prohibitive. Hell, even if I manage to stay on the low end, it will still be more than my last car cost me and that was not an elective purchase. But if I thought financing my little blue Ford for a few years was worthwhile, I should be more than willing to put some money down on a little peace of mind for a future family, shouldn’t I?
Decisions, decisions...I have some serious thinking to do about this. In the meantime, I intend to go through with the fertility assessment so I can see just what I’m working with and determine if fertility preservation is really an option for me.
Stay tuned.
Image via *sherryetal on deviantART