EXPERTS are warning that women opting for Social Egg Freezing (SEF) may not be fully aware that this is not a failsafe method of ensuring the ability to have a biologically related baby in the future. The term SEF is used for women storing their eggs for reasons other than medical conditions or treatments which may harm their ability to conceive, namely cancer.

This fear has been voiced among a debate as to whether egg freezing should be offered to women in their late thirties.

Those against state that egg freezing is being considered too late and as a “last ditch attempt”, when it should be being performed in a woman’s early 20s and most definitely before the age of 37.

This argument is partly based on the quality of a woman’s eggs declining with age, and the increased risks in pregnancy associated with older mothers.

Greater numbers of eggs may need to be harvested to increase the chance of getting pregnant. Cost-wise this may be as high as £15,000 with yearly storage from £200 to £400. However, in 2016 less than a third of women undergoing SEF were 35 or younger.

Those on the other side of the argument point out that SEF may give women fresh hope as they head toward the end of their natural fertility and that they should not be “punished with childlessness” merely because of social circumstances.

Success rates with egg freezing have increased in the last few years, with pregnancy figures of around 25 per cent in women aged 35 to 37, roughly the same as that with conventional IVF.

There is also call for extending the maximum ten0-year time period most eggs can be stored, so that women can consider SEF earlier on when their eggs are hopefully of better quality, without the worry of running out of time to find a suitable partner.

THE process of egg freezing involves collection of eggs from a woman’s ovaries, which are then frozen to protect their function.

It uses drugs which increase the number of eggs and help them to mature. This takes about two to three weeks, after which the eggs are removed either under sedation or a general anaesthetic.

Instead of the eggs then being combined with sperm, which is the basis of IVF, the unfertilised eggs are frozen and stored in liquid nitrogen.

When the woman feels ready, the eggs can be thawed and those that have survived are injected with the sperm of either a partner or donor.

If you are considering egg freezing, it is important that you choose a clinic with whom you feel comfortable.

It would be ideal to ask about their success rates, particularly among women of the same age. You will need to make important choices about the fate of the eggs should you become unable to make your own decisions.

Finally ensure you know the costs involved including that of mixing with sperm if or when you decide to have your eggs thawed.