Egg and Sperm Donation in India: What International Patients Need to Know

This guide will cover egg donation within the context of third-party reproductive laws and regulations in India. It will cover medical and legal screening processes and answer any questions foreign patients may have before seeking care in India.

Donor Conception in India and Its Related Laws

There are numerous laws pertaining to third-party reproduction in India, and these dictate that donors remain anonymous and that assisted reproduction clinics and gamete banks are registered and regulated. These laws are intended to protect the rights of all parties. Ethical and legal compliance should be of utmost importance to all clinics, and the legal obligations pertaining to third-party reproduction should not be obfuscated.

International patients should inquire about how a clinic’s donor program complies with the law. It is acceptable for patients to have questions pertaining to a clinic’s accreditation. Reputable clinics will provide documentation outlining compliance.

Why Do Couples Turn to Donor Eggs and Sperm?

Medical reasons exist that compel couples to utilize donor eggs and sperm. Women may be diagnosed with diminished ovarian reserve or may have premature ovarian failure. Women and men can be diagnosed, and couples can be recommended to use donor eggs and sperm due to the presence of a genetic condition that may be passed along to offspring. Women and men may experience repeated failure with in vitro fertilization. In men, severe factors of infertility may preclude the availability of sperm for use with other assisted reproductive technologies.

Ultimately, a thorough evaluation of the female partner’s and the male partner’s reproductive potential and health may delineate the need for the couple to rely on donor eggs and/or donor sperm.

What Happens Prior to Egg and Sperm Donation?

Egg and sperm donors undergo an extensive medical screening and evaluation, which includes a psychological evaluation to determine their mental understanding and voluntary nature of the donation. Egg donors are screened based on physical characteristics and blood type. Matching is not always successful. Relevant medical and family history of the donor may also be given to the recipient.

This described process should give confidence to patients seeking donor egg and sperm cycles that these clinic-based programs are regulated, standardized, and not arbitrary.

The Process of Egg and Sperm Donation

Egg donation and IVF are closely connected. In both cases, eggs are retrieved from the donor and subsequently fertilized and placed in the intended mother. The primary difference is that, in IVF, the eggs are retrieved from the intended mother, whereas in cases where egg donation is used, the intended mother’s eggs are not retrieved.

Sperm donation, in principle, is less complicated. Similar steps are taken to screen both the donor and the recipient and ensure they are a match. The complicated part is synchronizing the donor’s and the recipient’s cycles. As mentioned above, for IVF using egg donation, the intended mother’s eggs are not retrieved. Thus, a more flexible scheduling system can be used to synchronize the donor and recipient cycles, especially if the intended mother and donor are in different time zones.

Egg Donation and IVF Success

In the case of women at, or approaching, their late childbearing years, the use of donated eggs is recommended. Typically, egg donors are women in their 20s and 30s and, as such, are expected to have better quality eggs than women in their 40s and 50s. That being said, there is a considerable degree of variation in the type of egg donors available to any given client and the number of egg donors required to achieve pregnancy.

Because donor eggs are not always guaranteed to result in a successful pregnancy, clients are advised to look at clinic-specific data and information on donor egg programs to determine the success of a given clinic and set realistic expectations.

The Emotional Element of This Choice

For many couples considering donor conception, this is an emotional decision as they grieve the loss of not having a child genetically related to them. While this can be emotional, it doesn’t show any lack of commitment to the process. In fact, many couples have reported that it is a normal aspect of their journey. Because of this, many clinics provide counseling to help couples process the decision.

MediKaya Healthcare believes that each couple should have the emotional support they need to process this decision and should help them locate support if they need it. MediKaya Healthcare believes that support and processing of one’s emotions help couples come to terms with the decisions they’ve made and feel a sense of closure.

Decision to Choose MediKaya Healthcare

Along with ensuring a clinic has their ART license, potential clients should ask a clinic about the ethical standards surrounding donor compensation. Additionally, clients should inquire about the screening tests, ethics regarding donor profile matching, and the overall transparency of the clinic.

MediKaya Healthcare works with hospitals like Apollo Athena, who offer donor programs that are regulated and provide clients with all the screening and legal records, giving clients peace of mind regarding their programs.

International Patient Journey to India

Most international couples seeking donor conception begin their journey with an initial, online consult to review their medical history and discuss their preferences regarding donor matching. They later return for an in-person visit to coordinate the collection and transfer of the donor gametes. The length of the coordination visit depends on the type of donor cycle (fresh or cryopreserved).

The fertility coordination team at MediKaya Healthcare is responsible for organizing the logistics of the journey, including donor matching, document legislation, and the couples’ overall journey experience.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Is Egg Donation Legal for International Patients?

Egg donation is legal in India and is governed by the provisions of the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act of 2021, under which ART clinics are required to screen donors and ensure their anonymity.

Q. Can a Patient Choose a Donor Based on Appearance?

Partner clinics of MediKaya Healthcare provide egg donor profiles that do not identify the donor by name and do not include personal information about the donor. This allows patients to choose a donor based on physical attributes, blood type, and other general information.

Q. What is your donor screening process?

Potential donors go through a thorough process that includes a medical history and infectious disease screening, as well as psychological screening and evaluation.

Q. What is the difference between a fresh and frozen donor egg cycle?

During a fresh donor egg cycle, the recipient and donor are instructed to synchronize their cycles so that the donor egg retrieval and the recipient’s endometrial preparation and transfer can occur as close to simultaneously as possible. In a frozen donor egg cycle, the donor egg cycle is synchronized with the recipient’s cycle, but the donor eggs are retrieved, frozen, and stored for a later cycle. Frozen donor egg cycles are often better for international patients due to the scheduling flexibility.

Q. What causes the difference in success rates between donor eggs and self-eggs for patients over the age of 50?

Self-eggs of a patient over the age of 50 often have a diminished ovarian reserve and thus decrease the odds of a successful embryo formation and implantation. Eggs from donors under 35, who are screened to have an adequate ovarian reserve, increase the odds of IVF success.

Q. Do you have any therapy or counseling services to help patients and their families who are considering using a donor?

Yes, MediKaya Healthcare and its partner clinics provide this type of therapy to its patients and their families.