Women who donate their eggs so others can have children would be paid for their trouble, under changes to the IVF code of ethics being considered by Australia's chief medical advisory and research authority.
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As part of its review of the ethical guidelines for the practice of assisted reproductive technology in Australia, the National Health and Medical Research Council has sought public comment on whether women should be ''compensated for the reproductive effort and risks associated with donating their eggs''.
Fertility specialist Michael Chapman said there was a growing need for donors as more women over 40 seek to have children.
This age group now accounts for one in four of all IVF cycles undertaken, according to the latest statistics from the National Perinatal and Epidemiology Statistics Unit based at UNSW. Some of these women rely on donors to conceive. Two thirds of women using donor eggs, sperm or embryos to create a baby are over 40, and the average age is 41.
Fertility clinics estimate that up to 10 per cent of women over 40 they now see are single and using assisted reproductive technology to have babies by themselves. Often they need both donor eggs and sperm.
In Britain, women aged 35 and younger are paid £750 ($1340) to donate their eggs for a cycle, in addition to being reimbursed for any medical and travel expenses.
''We can't offer egg donors anything at the moment,'' Professor Chapman said. ''They have to have two weeks of injections and go through a procedure … The payment of donors could make a difference to the availability of eggs and sperm.''
Submissions from Professor Chapman and some of his fertility colleagues to the NHMRC review will argue egg donors should be paid something and sperm donors should be paid more than the $100 they currently receive, to encourage more donations.
Women are increasingly using assisted reproductive technology to conceive children, with 66,000 cycles undertaken in Australia and New Zealand in 2011, up 7 per cent from the previous year. Only 17.5 per cent of these treatments resulted in the birth of a live baby.
Women aged between 23 and 32 have the best odds of giving birth, with 26 live deliveries for every 100 ART cycles. By comparison women aged 45 or older have a one in 100 chance of delivering a child. However, these are better odds than a decade ago.