What is an Oocyte Thawing Cycle?
Oocyte thawing cycles involve a coordinated approach between the patient and the laboratory to give frozen eggs the best chance of successful fertilisation and embryo implantation to achieve a pregnancy. The process includes:
- Ovulation tracking or induction – Inducing or monitoring ovulation to time the precise moment to thaw oocytes to match endometrial maturity with the right time for embryo transfer
- Oocyte thawing – vitrified (frozen) eggs are gently warmed using validated thawing protocols to maximise egg survival
- Preparation of sperm – partner or donor sperm is processed in the laboratory to select motile, high-quality sperm
- ICSI Insemination – thawed eggs are combined with prepared sperm using ICSI insemination to allow for fertilisation to occur
- Fertilisation assessment – embryologists monitor the eggs the following day to confirm whether fertilisation has occurred
- Embryo culture – normally fertilised eggs are grown in the laboratory for up to six days under optimal culture conditions
- Embryo transfer or embryo cryo-preservation – depending on your treatment plan, a suitable embryo can be transferred to the uterus or frozen for future use
Who can benefit from Oocyte Thawing Cycle?
- Those who previously froze their eggs for fertility preservation purposes
- Those undergoing frozen donor egg treatment
- Those who stored eggs prior to medical treatment(e.g., chemotherapy)
- Those who unexpectedly froze their eggs and do not wish to undergo another fresh stimulated cycle (usually where sperm was not available on the day of their original egg collection in a previous cycle)
