Egg freezing and preservation

Egg freezing is preceded by hormonal stimulation of the ovaries. The ovaries are stimulated with injectable hormone medications to produce more eggs than during the regular menstrual cycle.

The preparation process lasts around two weeks. During this time, you will visit the gynaecologist 2-3 times to check the effectiveness of the treatment. During ovarian puncture, the egg cells are extracted from the ovary. The procedure is performed under general anaesthesia and lasts around 1-2 hours, including waking from anaesthesia.

The collected eggs are frozen using a rapid freezing technique called vitrification. Egg freezing and preservation is indicated in women who are about to undergo treatment that may impair fertility (e.g. cancer treatment). Radiation and chemotherapy are extremely toxic to egg cells and may cause permanent infertility.

Egg freezing and preservation is also possible at the request of a patient who wishes to postpone pregnancy to a later period of life.

Freezing eggs helps young women give birth to their own children in the future. It is recommended that eggs be frozen before the age of 35.

At our centre, it is possible to freeze eggs for a period of 12 years.

The Health Insurance Fund reimburses egg freezing and preservation for women up to 35 years of age who are about to undergo fertility-impairing treatment. For more information, see the price list of the Women’s Clinic.