



Emotions, not cost, why most end IVF

Source: Access Australia, City Fertility Clinic

Source: Access Australia, City Fertility Clinic


The study of 21,453 patients in eight countries, published in the journal Human Reproduction Update, showed that the emotional pressure of undergoing IVF treatment significantly outweighed financial concerns.

With one in 33 Australian babies born each year using assisted fertility techniques, the study recommended better care of patients undergoing IVF.

The British study, published last month, found 14 per cent of patients gave up treatment due to the psychological pressure and 6 per cent cited the physical burden as a reason. Marital and personal problems were also significant, with 16.7 per cent of patients saying this led them to discontinue treatment.

A number of patients also lost hope of ever conceiving, with 7.3 per cent saying they gave up due to a perception of poor prognosis and 3.2 per cent saying they had no faith in the success of the treatment.

Financial concerns were also cited, with 9.2 per cent of patients naming money as a reason for stopping treatment, according to the research led by Cardiff University.

David Wilkinson from the City Fertility Clinic in Melbourne said he often had patients who could afford to keep going with IVF treatment but chose to stop due to the stress of repeated cycles.

''For most people persistence is normally the key, but there are a group of patients who find it much harder to conceive,'' Dr Wilkinson said. ''The emotional trauma of that can be quite significant but it's also that none of us can give answers as to why it's not working or offer any guarantees that they will eventually succeed. That can be the hardest thing to deal with.''

Sonya Jessup and David Knight, two fertility specialists who recently welcomed their IVF baby, Samuel, into the world, said doctors could often overlook the emotional impact of treatment.

The couple, who live in Sydney's south, met in their early 40s and knew time was not on their side if they wanted to conceive.

''We were well aware of our overall chances of getting pregnant,'' Dr Knight said. ''I think both of us in the back of our minds thought, 'OK, let's give it a shot,' but we didn't think we would get the outcome that we wanted, even with IVF.''

Dr Jessup, who has four children from a previous relationship, was 41, had undergone a tubal ligation and had a low number of eggs when she started fertility treatment. After three cycles of IVF she conceived using a frozen embryo and Samuel was born on May 22.

She said the process gave her a firsthand experience of what her own patients endured.

''It made me realise that the needles and the technical side aren't that bad at all, it's the emotional side. You are always wondering, 'Am I going to get pregnant this month?' and then it's very disappointing when you're not,'' she said.

For Dr Knight, who has three older children, it was equally eye-opening.

''I was completely frustrated by the fact that it was Sonya who was having to do it,'' he said.

''I must admit to crying on the odd occasion.

''The things that I found most difficult for us were actually the things that I do day-to-day in my professional life, like egg collection. It's not a biggie, but it is a biggie when it's the person you love doing it.''

But the couple are now both glad they persevered, despite the emotional hurdles.

''If I had stopped after the first two egg collections, I wouldn't have Sam,'' Dr Jessup said.



  • The study does not mention where people are forced out of IVF programs by bureacratic interference. Adoption programs demand a couple cease all fertility programs and prove reliable (often medical) birth control methods are in place.This article mentions nothing about this as a reason, yet it would also be quite a significant representation in statistics. One night add that with recent history, adoption programs slam shut without notice making this route to parenthood as precarious as IVF,

    Some people are forced out
    Date and time
    September 16, 2012, 1:41PM
    • @ Some people are forced out

      re: some adoption programs demand a couple cease all fertility programs and require medical birth control methods are in place?

      Really? That's the first I've heard, sounds ridiculous!
      I do know that adoption isn't given the priority it deserves - a woman I know told me that it's relatively easy (as in everything took less than 18 months) to adopt a child, as long as prospective parents are willing to adopt 5 year olds. Most people don't, they want babies, and I find it understandable, but quite sad. These kids once they hit 5 are deemed to be un-adoptable and then go into numerous foster homes until they hit 17 when they are forced to survive on their own.
      This woman was able to adopt 2 five year olds, then went on to have 2 of her own children naturally.
      My own parents weren't able to have children for 8 years after they were married and saw many of the fertility experts here in the 1980's. When they were offered IVF, they refused on ethical grounds and it was in the last round of testing they found out what was wrong.
      10 months later, I was born naturally.
      I know that a lot of women have expectations themselves and from others that they will be mothers, but I do think that infertile couples should be given more support to be at peace with the situation, rather than feeling as though they should try IVF. Sometimes, giving up your own plans requires more love and patience than having your own children.
      Children should never be seen as the completion of a person or a couple, they are not a given, they are a gift. Literally.

      Miss Doyle
      Date and time
      September 16, 2012, 2:20PM
      Comments are now closed
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