Using Donor Embryos

Who requires donor embryos?

The use of donated embryos may be considered in cases of untreatable infertility that involves both partners, untreatable infertility in a single donor embryo recipient, recurrent pregnancy loss thought to be related to the embryo, and genetic disorders affecting one or both of the partners.

Who can be an embryo donor?

Individuals and couples of all ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds can become embryo donors. This includes individuals and couples of all different heights, shapes and sizes, as long as they meet these prerequisites:

• The embryo donor must be 23-35 and the sperm donor must be 21-55 with at least one child (minimum 3 years old).
• Donors must be in good health, with no history of hereditary disease. Donors will not be accepted if they suffer from an illness, disease or genetic condition that poses an unacceptable risk of being passed on to any child conceived from the donation.
• Clinic recruited donors must have a permanent address and be contactable for follow-up screening. They must be able to provide three identifiers and proof of a permanent address, e.g. driver’s licence, photo ID and passport

Types of embryo donors

There are two main types of embryo donation:

Known donation

This is where the donor and recipient personally know each other and there is an existing relationship between them.

Clinic-recruited donation

In the case of a clinic-recruited donation, the recipient does not know the donor, and the donor’s identity may remain unknown to the recipient.