Egg Donation Glossary
Egg donation involves a lot of specific terms. Here is a list of the most commonly used words and phrases around egg donation. If you have any questions, let us know - we’re happy to discuss the process and provide additional information.
Donation Experience
Directed donation – A donor arrangement where the donor and the intended parents share identifying information and/or have contact with each other. This could be a donor who is a friend or family member of the intended parents, or people who meet during the matching process. Also called “known donation.”
Donor-conceived child - someone who was born from an embryo developed with a donor egg and/or donor sperm
Egg donor – a person who provides their eggs for another person to use to have a child. Egg donors do not have parental rights nor responsibilities for donor-conceived children.
Egg donor compensation – the payment an egg donor receives for their time and effort. At SIMPLIFY, compensation ranges from $8,000-$10,000. Intended parents provide donor compensation and cover any additional expenses.
Egg donor database - a list for intended parents of all available egg donors. The database typically includes details such as ethnicity, age, education, photos and a physical description, but doesn’t include identifying information like a donor’s name.
Egg donor screening: a series of physical, mental, and genetic health assessments required as part of the egg donor application process.
Egg recipient – a person who receives eggs from an egg donor.
Intended parent - the person trying to have a child through egg donation or other fertility treatment. Intended parents have full parental rights and responsibilities for any donor-conceived children.
Non-Directed Donation – A donor arrangement where the donor and the intended parents do not share identifying information and have no contact with each other. While no donor can be guaranteed full anonymity because of at-home DNA testing, non-directed donation prevents contact between the intended parents and donor.
Embryo Development
Blastocyst - a cluster of cells that forms in the early stages (around day 5) of embryo development.
Embryo – the early stage of human development, after an egg is fertilized with sperm. Embryos can implant in a uterus to become a pregnancy. In humans, the fertilized egg develops into a blastocyst, then an embryo; about eight weeks after fertilization it is typically then called a fetus.
Implantation – When an embryo embeds itself into the lining of the uterus to develop into a pregnancy.
Reproductive System
Cervix – a canal connecting the top of the vagina to the uterus.
Fallopian Tubes – A pair of small tubes connecting the ovaries to the uterus, with one tube per ovary. During ovulation, an egg travels through the fallopian tube. In conception, sperm and egg meet in the fallopian tube for fertilization.
Follicle – a round, fluid-filled sac in the ovary containing an oocyte, or immature egg. During ovulation, the follicle releases a mature egg into the fallopian tubes. Each person with a uterus is born with all the follicles they will ever have, and their follicle count decreases over time.
Hormone – any of many different chemicals naturally produced by glands in the body. Several hormones, including estrogen and testosterone, affect the reproductive system and fertility.
Menstruation – your “period.” A monthly cycle where the uterus sheds its endometrium (lining) if a pregnancy has not developed.
Oocyte – an immature egg, contained in a follicle.
Ovary (pl. ovaries) – The female reproductive organ that contains eggs and produces hormones.
Ovulation – When a follicle in the ovaries releases a mature egg. This typically happens once a month, about 14 days before menstruation (your period).
Uterus – the hollow organ that carries and nurtures a pregnancy before birth. The uterus has a lining called the “endometrium,” where an embryo implants to develop into a pregnancy.
Medical Terms
Cryopreservation – the process of flash freezing donated tissue, like eggs or sperm, to safely store them for future use.
Donor insemination – using donated sperm to fertilize an egg.
Egg retrieval - a minor surgical procedure to remove eggs from a donor and prepare them for intended parents. The donor receives anesthesia; the fertility doctor inserts a very thin needle through the vagina into the ovaries to remove the eggs using suction.
Embryo transfer – part of in vitro fertilization (IVF), where an embryo developed in a lab is transferred into a uterus. The embryo transfer is a minor surgical procedure. A fertility doctor inserts a very thin tube through the cervix into the uterus, then passes the embryo through the tube so it can hopefully implant in the uterus and become a pregnancy.
Gestational surrogacy – a third-party reproductive process where the intended parent(s) have another person receive the embryo, carry the pregnancy, and give birth. This person is called the gestational carrier, or surrogate.
In vitro fertilization (IVF) – an assisted reproductive technology where eggs are retrieved, fertilized in a laboratory to develop embryos, and then transferred back into the uterus. IVF can help some people who struggle with infertility become pregnant.
Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) – a rare side effect of the fertility medications involved with IVF and egg donation. OHSS occurs when ovaries produce excess fluid, which leaks into the body. Most cases of OHSS are mild; rarely, more severe cases might require hospital treatment. The risks of OHSS can be lowered by carefully monitoring medication levels during ovarian stimulation.
Ovarian reserve – a measure of the ovaries’ potential to provide eggs for a healthy pregnancy, looking at remaining egg quantity and quality. Ovarian reserve lowers over time, dropping off significantly after age 35 and making it harder to become pregnant.
Ovarian stimulation – the process of taking specific hormonal medications to encourage the ovaries to develop multiple mature eggs in a cycle for retrieval.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) – a condition caused by hormonal imbalance, often causing fluid-filled sacs (cysts) to grow in the ovaries. Other symptoms include irregular periods, extra hair growth or loss, acne, insulin resistance, and weight gain. PCOS is a common cause of infertility.
Preimplantation genetic testing (PGT-A) – a way to test embryos for chromosomal imbalances before an embryo transfer
Trigger shot - a hormone injection given around 36 hours before the egg retrieval that tells the ovaries to release the mature eggs.