best clinic for >40

[Cindy14]

I turned 43 two days ago. What is the best clinic to go to for those over 40? Thanks for your assistance.

[SammysMom]

Hi, and welcome. Picking a clinic depends upon where you live. Checking the CDC site for ART statistics is the place to look. If you are in Southern Cali, the best I saw were for Dr. Najmabadi in Bev Hills 3 out of 6 women had a live birth, Dr. Danzer in Bev Hills-25%, Dr. Surrey (brother of the Surrey at CCRM) in Bev Hills-31.8%, Dr. Vermesh in Tarzana-32.3%. CCRM in Colorado had 20.8% success and St. Barts in NJ had 8.2%. Of course these are for women ages 41-42 years old. There are no statistics for over that age. Good luck!

[tmyers]

You can also ask the RE's for their stats for your age group, they should keep them and be willing to disclose them.

[Loraflo]

Where are you located?

[Cindy14]

Located in Sacramento but willing to travel ANYWHERE were they have best stats for older women. Thanks for the feedback.

[Loraflo]

Cindy, I am in Napa, so I am within range of where you are located. I was recommended by my ob/gyn (who was herself infertile at one time) to the Reproductive Science Center of the Bay Area, www.rscbayarea.com You can check out their webpage for their stats. They are quite well known and I have felt confident going to them even though my first IVF was chemical and they are a drive even for me. They also have an in-house donor pool should you ever choose that route. My insurance doesn't cover IVF, but they said they would cover the initial visit only if I went to the Sher institute in Sacramento. I did a phone consult with them and found out that they were much more expensive even though their initial consult is free. I also disagreed with their approach and was not satisfied with their statistics, but you may come to a different conclusion.

I wish you the best whatever you choose!!!!!

Oh, the big thing is that RSC will only do DE with >42 because of the <5% success, so obviously that will be a factor unless you go the de route.

[tmyers]

Hi Loraflo! Happy New Year!

I'm curious, what didn't you like about SIRM's approach? I am still debating going with them.

Teresa

[Loraflo]

Happy New Year to you too, Teresa and the rest of the ladies! I'm hopeful for us both/all this year.

In terms of Sher, when I had the phone consult with them, they outlined what the money would be up front and pretty much said that it couldn't be changed or modified. Before they would do anything, they required their own in-house tests--some sort of secret protocol that they "own" and they said I could not get it anywhere near me or from anyone else. I can't remember the dollar amount, but the entire IVF procedure would have been several thousand more than what I did with RSC. I felt that the focus of my consult was on money and not about me or the particulars of my situation. It felt like some corporate approach-like mass customers and packages. Still, I was undecided after the phone call and did my own research. I found out that their stats were no better, and in many cases lower, than other centers. For all their extra tests, they had really nothing to show for it. However, they are HUGE and they are sort of the brand name for infertility now.

On the other side of this was my then ob/gyn who had struggled with her own IF for a while until she went to RSC and to this particular RE she recommended to me. I trusted her a lot and she had great personal testimony about how this center tailored the protocol to each woman's own body/circumstances. That's what I was looking for. Unfortunately, as I said, they do not do >43 with the woman's own eggs, but they do DE whenever. They have amazing stats with >40 and DE. Even their >40 with own eggs had on the 20% instead of the 5% side of pg, although we all know that 20% is still disappointing for us.

For me, I feel the best way to go is with DE so that I can start a family w/out going through the trials of adoption. My chances are very very high and from all the personal experiences I've read and people I've talked to who have used DE, they never looked back. It has nothing to do with actually being pg and going through the 9 mo for me; it is more about starting from the beginning without worrying about birth mothers or agencies who don't want infants to go to >40 mothers (so unfair!). It would also be a wonderful miracle that the child would have my Dh's genes and as close to a match to mine. That's way more than adoption can guarantee me. At least that's where I'm at now.

Of course, having said that, I have just gone through a disappointing month with a bust IUI and am feeling pretty down. I'm tending to play head games with myself asking such negative things like, "well, yeah, with DE my chances are way over 50%, but what if I'm the 25% that doesn't get pg the first time with DE? What then after all that borrowed money is shot?"

ugh.

Sorry for the long-windedness, but it also helped me organize my thoughts.

[SammysMom]

Hi Ladies!! I just wanted to pop in and say that I'm sorry your IUI was a bust Loraflo. I know that with every month that goes by, our hearts hurt a little more for want of a child. Sorry I can't help out about SIRM, they don't post their statistics on the CDC. I do like their board though, and read it everyday. They seem like a very informative group like St. Barnubus.

I know how you feel about the DE cycle Loraflo, and what if you fall into that 25-30% statistic where it doesn't work. I just signed my contract with my DE, did the psych eval and I'm sending my money to my clinic for the cycle today, so I'm very nervous about the whole thing. I told my husband if it doesn't work, I'm going to South Africa for the DE program over there. The boards on Network54 talk about it. Also, over there (Network54), you'll find tons of ladies that get BFP's doing DE. It's very encouraging. Good luck ladies, and Teresa, I hope you find a clinic you feel comfortable with soon.

[tmyers]

Loraflo, sorry I missed the post about IUI. I know my cycle is always off after a cycle, so you may have better luck next month, if you try again!

Where did you get stats from SIRM?

Sammysmom, what's the scoop on South Africa - is it much cheaper? After you factor in the travel and accommodations, is it still worth it? Or are the stats much better? Never heard of South Africa on this before - interestingly, Dr. Sher (SIRM) is from there.

Have a great weekend!
Teresa