How Many Times Can You Donate Eggs?

Have you ever wondered how many times you can donate your eggs? If you’re considering helping others on their journey to parenthood through egg donation, you’ll be pleased to know that multiple donations are possible.

The initial process takes about two months, but subsequent donations require less time, and the screening process is less intense. However, there are limitations to ensure your health and well-being.

Key Takeaways:

• The American Society for Reproductive Medicine sets a limit of six egg donations per lifetime to ensure the donor’s health and safety.
• The six-donation limit applies across all clinics, and each donation cycle requires a recovery phase between cycles, typically 2-3 months.
• The limit is in place to protect the donor’s health, mitigate risks, prevent consanguinity, and maintain genetic diversity.

Egg donation: how often can you donate?

You can donate eggs up to six times in your lifetime. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) sets this limitation to ensure your safety. This limit applies to the total lifetime donations a woman can make. Donating six times at one clinic means you cannot donate eggs again at any other clinic. 

Oocyte donors should be limited to 6 cycles per donor. The basis for this recommendation is rooted in a concern over a cumulative risk of the donor after undergoing >6 ovarian stimulation and oocyte retrieval procedures.

Source: Guidance Regarding Gamete and Embryo Donation (2021)

The purpose of this limitation is to safeguard the health and well-being of egg donors. The medication and procedures involved in the donation process aren’t for your direct health benefit. By limiting the number of donations, the ASRM aims to reduce the risk of potential side effects and complications arising from multiple donations.

It is important to note that there’s an exception to this limitation. If you have donated eggs to a recipient who’s successfully had a child from your donations, you may be allowed to donate to them again. This exception recognizes the unique circumstances of helping the same recipient build their family.

Why can you only donate eggs six times?

The ASRM recommends a limit of six donations in a lifetime. This limitation is in place for several reasons:

1. Egg donation involves medication to stimulate your ovaries and a medical procedure to retrieve the eggs. These interventions aren’t for your direct health benefit, and limiting the number of donations safeguards your well-being. Although severe side effects are rare, each cycle carries the risk of adverse reactions such as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS). By limiting donations, the ASRM aims to reduce the risk of potential complications.
2. Limiting the number of donations helps prevent inadvertent consanguinity, which occurs when offspring from different families unknowingly have a child together. This situation is extremely rare, but limiting donations lowers the chances of such incidents.
3. Egg quality typically declines after age 35, making eggs less likely to result in successful pregnancies. By capping donations at six, clinics ensure that the eggs donated are still viable.

Motivations for multiple egg donations

After going through the egg donation process once, you may feel motivated to donate your eggs again for multiple reasons.

Here are some motivations for donating eggs more than once:

1. Helping others: Many donors strongly desire to help individuals or couples struggling with infertility. The rewarding experience of contributing to someone’s dream of starting a family can be a powerful motivation to donate eggs again.
2. Positive experience: Most donors have a good experience during their first donation, with only mild discomfort. Knowing what to expect and having already gone through the process can make subsequent donations less intimidating and more appealing.
3. Ease of starting another cycle: After your first donation, you only need to wait two to three months before starting another cycle. The screening process is typically less intense, as much of the information collected during the initial screening is still valid. This makes it easier to begin a new cycle and continue helping others.
4. Shorter donation cycles: The donation process takes around two months the first time, but subsequent cycles typically require less time. With shorter cycles, you can continue making a difference in a shorter time frame.

How can you donate eggs multiple times?

Once you’ve completed the initial screening process and donated eggs for the first time, you can continue to donate multiple times by waiting for some time between each donation cycle. The waiting period between donations varies, typically around two to three months. This time allows your body to recover and return to normal after the egg retrieval process. It’s important to give your body this time to rest and heal before starting another cycle.

It’s worth noting that if it has been more than 24 months since your last donation, you may need to undergo re-screening to ensure that you still meet the physical and psychological health requirements to be an egg donor. This is to ensure your safety and the well-being of the recipients.

Disqualifications for donating eggs more than once

To be eligible to donate eggs multiple times, there are specific disqualifications that you should be aware of. Here are some factors that may prevent you from donating again:

1. Changes in personal or medical history: If you develop certain medical conditions or experience a change in your health that makes you ineligible to donate, you may be disqualified from future donations.
2. Problems with the egg retrieval process: If there were complications or difficulties during the retrieval process in your previous donation cycle, it may disqualify you from donating again.
3. Poor response to medication: If your ovaries didn’t respond well to the medication used to stimulate egg production in your previous donation cycle, it may affect your eligibility for future donations.
4. Emotional well-being: High levels of stress, anxiety, or depression experienced during your previous donation cycle may disqualify you from donating again.

It’s important to note that even if your last donation was successful, there may be cases where you can no longer meet the donation requirements and cannot donate again.

Frequently Asked Questions