Infertility treatment is only possible for women who have functioning ovaries and uterus. When a woman is lacking either of these, treatment involving third party reproduction will be recommended.
Similarly, treatment is only possible for men who can produce sperm; otherwise, sperm donation will be recommended.
Egg Donation
When a woman’s ovaries cannot produce eggs (because of chemotherapy, chromosomal abnormality, or ovarian failure) a treatment option will be egg donation from another woman. In egg donation, the recruited donor follows the initial steps of IVF or IVM treatment in order to donate her eggs to the recipient. The donated eggs are then mixed with the sperm of the recipient’s partner and resulting embryos are transferred to the recipient for pregnancy. We are the only center in Canada to offer IVM egg donation.
Sperm Donation
When a man’s testis cannot produce any sperm, or the sperm that is produced is of very poor quality, many couples will consider the use of donor sperm. Sperm donors are screened in accordance with the Health Canada regulations. Only sperm banks approved by Health Canada and by the Quebec Ministry of health can be used. Donor sperm is used either with intra uterine insemination (IUI) or with in vitro fertilization (IVF).