Fertility experts in Lothian have urged more people to step forward and help scores of couples to have a baby.
They are asking more kind-hearted people to become egg and sperm donors to give other people the chance of becoming parents.
The clinicians from Edinburgh Fertility Centre at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, joined the national campaign to recruit more donors as figures revealed that one in six couples experience fertility problems in Scotland. More than 200 people currently need donated eggs or sperm to create their families.
Dr Karolina Skorupskaite-Carlyle, Consultant in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery at the Edinburgh Fertility Centre, said that more donors were key for them to be able to continue this vital work.
She said: “We work with people every day who desperately want to experience the joys of parenthood, but in some cases they cannot conceive using their own eggs or sperm, for a variety of different reasons. Donors have the ability to give them the chance of that happiness. Donating eggs or sperm is a very special altruistic act, which can change peoples’ lives.
“Donation treatment can be appropriate for both heterosexual and same sex couples. I have supported many couples who never thought they would be able to have children and it is a privilege to be a part of their journey.”
Dr Skorupskaite-Carlyle advised that donors must be aged 18–35 and have a body mass index of less than 30 to donate their eggs or aged 18-45 to donate sperm. Donors must also be non-smokers, generally healthy and be able to provide a biological family history.
A couple from Linlithgow who were successful in conceiving a baby boy after struggling to get pregnant for over a year want to encourage potential donors to consider egg or sperm donation.
In March 2022, Laura McCabe 39, and Stacey McCabe, 37, received the life-changing news that Laura was pregnant after having IVF alongside a sperm donation. Nine months later, Laura gave birth to a healthy baby boy called Mason.
Laura, an Operations Manager, from Linlithgow, said: “Mason is the most beautiful little guy. Even when he was a baby, he was such a happy child and was always smiling. He’s added so much to our lives and to the lives of our families – everyone wants to see him all the time.”
Before getting pregnant, Laura and Stacey had six rounds of unsuccessful donor sperm intrauterine insemination (IUI) treatment, throughout 2021. IUI is a fertility treatment which gives sperm a chance at fertilising an egg.
Laura added: “I was getting worried that time was against us but we tried to remain as positive as possible. The staff at the Edinburgh Fertility Centre were brilliant at supporting us. Although it was really disappointing and I felt like my body was letting me down, Stacey and I always treated ourselves after an unsuccessful treatment. It really made us stronger together.”
After unsuccessful IUI, the couple decided to move to IVF using donor sperm. Two months later, Laura and Stacey got a call from the Edinburgh Fertility Centre to say that they were pregnant.
Stacey, a Sales Director, said: “We were both shaking when the clinic phoned us and we were absolutely overjoyed when we heard Laura was pregnant. After such a long process we were in disbelief, it didn’t feel real.”
A year on, Laura and Stacey are encouraging anyone considering egg or sperm donation to give other couples the gift of becoming a family.
Laura said: “Becoming an egg or sperm donor is one of the most selfless things that you can do. You would be helping someone to have a family who can’t conceive otherwise and allowing them to create a new life as a family.
“We couldn’t imagine life without Mason now and we’re so grateful to the staff at the clinic for helping us on our journey to parenthood.”
Visit eggsandsperm.scot to find out more about becoming a donor.
