One in four women use frozen eggs

A study of twenty thousand two hundred and nine Australian and New Zealand women who froze eggs for non-medical reasons found only one in four returned to use them within ten years.

Egg freezing costs thousands upfront

A single egg-freezing cycle in Australia costs between seven thousand and twelve thousand dollars upfront, then an extra five hundred to one thousand dollars a year in storage fees.

Anna Parle's successful freezing story

Anna Parle froze her eggs at thirty-seven when single, then used them after meeting her husband. She gave birth to one son at forty and another at forty-two, spending about thirty thousand dollars total.

“How do I keep this dream of mine alive going into my late-thirties?”

Egg freezing demand has surged

In two thousand and nine, fifty-five women underwent planned egg freezing in Australia and New Zealand. By two thousand and twenty-three, that number had risen to four thousand nine hundred and nineteen women.

Return rates higher than expected

After five years, twenty-two percent of women returned to use their eggs. After ten years, twenty-eight percent had returned. Most people who thawed their eggs did so after four point nine years.

Reproductive endocrinologist surprised by data

Devini Ameratunga, a Brisbane-based reproductive endocrinologist, said the return rate was higher than she expected. She said doctors typically counsel patients that about ten percent come back to use their eggs.

“In general, we tend to counsel patients that about 10 per cent of people come back and use their eggs.”

Women face high uncertainty

More than three in four women who froze eggs felt high uncertainty about what to do with them. Sherine Sandhu, a research fellow at the University of Melbourne, developed a decision aid to help women make informed choices.

Success depends on age and numbers

Oisin Fitzgerald, study lead author at University of New South Wales Sydney, said egg freezing had significant limitations. Success was heavily influenced by the age someone froze their eggs and the number of eggs thawed.

Procedure offers no guarantee

Anna Parle acknowledged not everyone has the same positive experience. She said egg freezing is not always a guarantee, and experts say accurate, evidence-based information is needed to help women make informed decisions.

“It's not always a guarantee.”