Donor Egg Program
Listen
to a live interview about egg donation with Penn
Fertility Care physician Kurt Barnhart, MD, MSCE.
 Many infertile couples make the decision to receive
a donated egg, which can be an essential step
in achieving a pregnancy. Some women are unable
to produce healthy eggs or have other factors
that prevent them from using their own eggs; therefore,
the use of donated eggs may be a necessity for
an infertile couple to become pregnant.
Egg
Donors
When you become
an egg donor, you give a couple the opportunity
to experience pregnancy, childbirth and most importantly
the chance to build a family. Egg donation is
a rewarding and unique experience for both donor
and recipient.
Donors may either be “anonymous”
or they may be a “known” donor, such
as a friend or relative. Most women decide to
undergo the egg donation process as anonymous
donors. Their identity remains anonymous throughout
the entire donor process.
The Donor Egg Program at Penn Fertility Care
is currently looking for healthy women, ages
21 to 30, who are interested in helping infertile
couples through egg donation. Generous compensation
is offered to the donors for their time and travel. If you are interested in becoming a donor, please
fill out the Egg
Donation Screening Form (PDF) or complete our online
If you are interested in becoming a donor, please
fill out the online Egg
Donation Screening Form. For more information
about our Donor Egg Program, please contact
Penn Fertility Care at 1-800-789-PENN (7366)
or 215-615-4218.
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Egg
Donation Process
Once a woman is a confirmed egg donor, the process
of synchronizing both donor and recipient’s
cycles will begin. Donors receive medication that
will stimulate her ovaries to produce multiple
egg-containing follicles. The patient (recipient)
prepares her uterus by taking estrogen tablets
or by applying estrogen patches and will also
take progesterone; once ovulation is triggered
in the donor.
After the donor’s eggs have matured, a
needle retrieves them (through the guidance of
an ultrasound). The eggs are then fertilized in
our state-of-the-art laboratory and will incubate
for two to five days. After incubation, the eggs
are transferred to the recipient's uterus in a
simple outpatient procedure. A pregnancy test
is performed 9 to 12 days after the transfer.
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Egg
Recipients
The option to receive a donated egg is an excellent,
medically appropriate therapy for women who have
diminished ovarian function and are unable to
produce their own eggs.
Penn Fertility Care offers you the convenience
of providing a fertility evaluation, available
egg donors, pre-implantation hormone therapy and
the IVF procedure, all within one location.
There are many reasons infertile couples consider
using donated eggs, including:
- Premature ovarian failure (premature menopause)
- Absence of ovaries due to surgery, previous
chemotherapy or radiation therapy
- Patients whose own eggs are of poor quality
(age can be a primary factor)
- Being a carrier of genetic diseases
At Penn Fertility Care we offer more than hope.
This mission is reflected in the variety of conception
options we offer to our patients. We take great
pride in every resulting birth and in the caring
service we provide to all of our patients. Women
who are in need of egg donation can call 1-800-789-PENN
to make an appointment for a consultation with
a Penn Fertility Care specialist.
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