How Do Women Donate Eggs?

Over the last three decades, as more and more couples globally struggle with infertility, many thousands of selfless, kind-hearted women have become egg donors in South Africa.

So how exactly do women donate eggs?

Over the years, we at Cape Fertility have streamlined the process of donating eggs into 7 straightforward steps to make it as easy for our egg donors as possible. These 7 steps are detailed below.

Donating eggs – a 7-step process

Step 1

The first step in becoming an egg donor is simple and quick: contact our Egg Donor Fairy God Mother, Linda, on 066 22 55 003 or donors@capefertility.co.za or fill in your contact details here. All information provided is 100% confidential and will under no circumstances be made available to anybody else.

It is the only step women who are donating eggs at Cape Fertility need to take on their own. Linda has many years of experience supporting egg donors and a wealth of information to share, and will gladly answer any questions and provide guidance in giving the gift of a lifetime.

Step 2

To ascertain a woman’s suitability as an egg donor, a confidential medical questionnaire must be completed. For those women whose medical questionnaires confirm their suitability to donate eggs, Linda will be ready to assist with Step 3.

Step 3

Step 3 is completing an Egg Donor Profile, which is anonymous and confidential. Our egg donors’ privacy and anonymity are guaranteed with us.

A donor profile seen by potential recipients and only shows details about physical characteristics, medical background, education and hobbies, as well as childhood photos – never names, personal details or adult photos – so an egg donation always remains anonymous.

Step 4

These profiles are added to Cape Fertility’s world-class and secure database of egg donors from which moms-to-be can select their match – some look at physical characteristics that match their own and others look for similar lifestyle choices and interests. Cape Fertility facilitates more egg donor matches than any other clinic in South Africa. We have many local and international recipients every month who require an egg donor.

Since there are fewer egg donors than couples who need eggs to achieve their dream of becoming pregnant, our egg donors have a very good chance of being selected to donate soon, if not immediately.

Once an egg donor’s profile is been selected by a recipient, Linda will assist with Step 5.

Step 5

Linda and her team will arrange for an egg donor who is selected by a recipient to attend a 2-hour appointment, during which she will meet one of our fertility specialists and our psychologist. We will explain the full egg donation procedure and she will be able to ask any questions and to discuss any concerns she may have. During the appointment, our egg donors also have a detailed medical examination, including routine investigations and a psychological assessment.

Step 6

The next step is to complete an egg donation cycle.

During an egg donation cycle, an egg donor is cared for by a specialist medical team of fertility specialists, qualified nursing sisters, a resident psychologist and a dedicated egg donor co-ordinator, who have been caring for egg donors’ emotional and medical needs for many years and have safely completed thousands of treatments.

Our Egg Donor Co-ordinator, Linda, and our team are there for our egg donors 24/7 and take care of all our egg donors’ needs.

The egg donation cycle starts with fertility injections for 10-12 days to grow the follicles (eggs), along with about four doctor’s appointments over the two-week period for regular ultrasounds to check the development of the eggs and to ensure that the medication is responding well.

Most donors experience no side effects at all while on this medication. Some donors may experience PMS type symptoms like bloating, moodiness or pelvic discomfort. Any side effects disappear when the medication is no longer taken.

Egg retrieval day requires that donors take a full day off work or daily activities and arrangements for someone to take them home after the procedure. The egg donation (retrieval) is performed by one of our fertility specialist doctors under ultrasound guidance. Under a mild general anaesthetic, our egg donors sleep during the procedure which takes about 30 minutes. Donors do not experience any pain during the procedure – and there is no cutting, stitches or scarring.

After the procedure, our donors stay in recovery for about 1 hour before going home. Some donors experience some discomfort similar to that experienced with a period, for which normal pain relief medication can be taken.

By law, egg donors can be compensated for reasonable expenses – such as getting to and from the clinic for the various appointments and for the procedure on egg donation day. At Cape Fertility, our donors receive the maximum permissible compensation allowable in South Africa, which is currently R8000 per donation cycle. This maximum compensation is paid by us, directly to our donors, on the day of and after their egg donation.

Step 7

After egg retrieval, Linda and our team remain in contact with our donors.

Egg donors can decide to remain available for another donation. By law a woman can donate up to six times. Many of our Cape Fertility donors return again and again, finding it such a rewarding experience that they gladly donate more than once.

Why do women donate eggs at Cape Fertility?

Cape Fertility has been leading the way in egg donation since 1993 and for the last 26 years we have worked with thousands of egg donors in a friendly, relaxed and caring environment at our advanced, purpose-built facilities in the beautiful city of Cape Town.

Cape Fertility is a leader in the legal and ethical requirements, as set out by both the Department of Health and South African Society of Reproductive Medicine and Gynaecological Endoscopy (SASREG).

By joining the Cape Fertility Egg Donor Program, our egg donors are assured that they are donating eggs at a leading South African fertility clinic, where they can expect dedicated one-on-one attention to make their egg donation process a positive experience.

If you want to know more about how women donate eggs, simply fill in your contact details here, or contact our Egg Donor Fairy God Mother, Linda, on 066 22 55 003 or donors@capefertility.co.za. Your information is 100% confidential and will under no circumstances be made available to anybody else.

Linda has many years of experience supporting egg donors and a wealth of information to share and will answer your questions and guide you further in giving the gift of a lifetime.

We look forward to welcoming you to our friendly, professional and leading Fertility Clinic and supporting you throughout your entire egg donation process, as well as after your egg donation is completed.