What is the Egg Donation Process?

A Guide to Donating Eggs

This article breaks down the egg donation process, so you can begin to feel informed and prepared to be an egg donor with SIMPLIFY. Egg donation is a medical procedure, so naturally there is a lot more information involved, which our team is happy to discuss with you in detail during your screening interview and along the way.

Part 1: Pre-Donation

Egg Donor Application Process

The first step to becoming an egg donor is to gather your family medical history and apply. As recommended by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), candidates must meet certain physical, psychological, and behavioral health requirements to qualify as a SIMPLIFY egg donor. For a complete list of our requirements and the egg donor application, click here. 

Screening & Acceptance

If you meet the initial requirements, we will schedule a pre-screening appointment and interview with you. This visit includes physical and psychological screenings, a gynecological screening including a pelvic ultrasound and exam, blood and urine tests and genetic testing. The medical aspects of the donation process, including the screening exams, are conducted at our partner clinic, Pacific Northwest Fertility (PNWF), with a dedicated team of doctors, nurses, and donor coordinators assisting at every step of the way. If your exam results all meet the donor requirements, you will be accepted as a SIMPLIFY donor.

Paperwork & Profile Creation

Once you have been accepted as a SIMPLIFY egg donor, you will complete the required paperwork, agreeing to compensation and your understanding of the egg donation process. You will also provide information and photos for your SIMPLIFY donor profile; this often includes childhood or family photos, as well as hobbies, interests, and accomplishments.

Part 2: Egg Donation Process

Unlike with an egg donor agency, at SIMPLIFY, approved donors do not have to wait for intended parents to choose them before donating eggs. Instead, once you have completed the pre-screening and paperwork, you are able to start the actual donation process, which is essentially the first half of the IVF process. The egg donation process usually takes 2-3 weeks.

Initial Medications

First, you will be prescribed a specific birth control medication to regulate your menstrual cycle. The next step is two weeks of injectable hormone medications that will stimulate your ovaries to produce more mature eggs than in a typical cycle. If you are not comfortable self-injecting medications, you may have a friend, partner, or family member help you with the process. While you are taking these medications, you are extremely fertile, so it’s very important that you abstain from sexual intercourse with partners with sperm to avoid pregnancy.

Egg Retrieval

Before the egg retrieval, you will receive a final injection to prompt your ovaries to release the mature eggs. The egg retrieval itself is a minimally invasive outpatient procedure that we perform at our facility. While you are under sedation, an ultrasound probe is inserted into the vagina along with a very thin tube that enters the ovaries and removes the eggs using suction. The actual procedure only takes about 15 minutes, and the anesthesia wears off not long after. You will need someone to drive you home following the procedure so you can rest. Most donors are able to return to non-physical activities like work or school the following day, and feel completely recovered after a couple of days.

Part 3: Post-Donation

Once you have completed the egg donation, the eggs are flash-frozen at our partner fertility clinic, Pacific Northwest Fertility (PNWF), and stored until they are selected by intended parents.

Compensation

Once your donation is completed, you will receive your compensation. We compensate our donors between $8,000 and $10,000, and additional cycles may be compensated at a higher rate.

Future Donation Cycles

After you have successfully donated your eggs once, you may be eligible to donate again. The ASRM recommends a maximum of six donation cycles per donor. If you are interested in donating again, we are happy to discuss the options with you, as each donor responds differently to the egg donation process. If you are approved for additional cycles, the process is often more streamlined, as you have already been accepted as a donor.

If you are interested in becoming a donor, apply today! If you have questions about the egg donation process, we’re happy to help.