Like anything else, egg donation is associated with pros and cons for couples who wanted to have their own baby. Women who are fertile donate eggs to many egg donor banks across the world. The eggs they donate are used for artificial insemination procedures to couples who are not fertile. Regardless of the artificial insemination procedure to be undertaken, both donors and recipients must know the pros and cons of this highly controversial process.
The 3 Pros of Egg Donation
1. Psychological Effects
Egg donation both have positive and negative psychological effects. Women who choose to donate fertile egg feel happy about helping other women conceive. However, some concerns are arising about egg donation. According to the Fertility and Sterility article, 1 out 5 women are afraid to donate eggs as they feel uncomfortable about how their donated eggs will be used, or even how the child will be raised.
2. Availability
Several or many of the egg donation brokers seek particular types of person according to their genetics, race, physical characteristics, and even intelligence, so couples unable to conceive can find eggs that can match their characteristics as a whole. The screening for egg donors involves testing for the mental attitude of the donor to the recipient or vise versa. If negative attitude is observed between the two parties, the egg donation may be canceled.
3. Monetary Benefits
In other countries, egg donation is treated same with organ donation, and donors are not paid for their act. However, in some places, cash is offered to women who are willing to donate fertile eggs. In fact, there has been a case reported that a single woman was offered $4000 for up to dozens of her eggs per harvesting session.
The 2 Cons of Egg Donation
1. Health Risks
Few of the health risks involved in egg donation may include, but not limited to pain, cramping, over stimulation of the ovary, and infections. There is no study suggesting that egg donation can interfere with the woman’s capability to conceive by her own self or the entire fertility process. While donors go through rigorous heath screening, these health risks may still develop.
2. Egg with Genetic Defects
There is a high possibility the egg donated can have genetic defects or may develop disorders while the unfertile woman is conceiving. A woman donating fertile eggs may not be aware that she has a medical history of mental deficiencies or heart problems.
The Verdict
The popular opinion of the public is that a woman donating her eggs is not actually giving her eggs in exchange for money. In many countries, a woman cannot be legally paid for her eggs. However, due to the inconvenience of egg donation, the donor is compensated with cash. With the number of exams and screenings, and medical treatment required by the egg donation process, the amount required for monetary compensation is extremely high. The amount of money given by egg donation brokers and recipients to the donor can be used by the patient in any means that she prefers to use it.
