Getting IVF Treatment Abroad

How to go about getting affordable IVF treatment abroad and what checks and research to carry out before you go

According to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines, couples where the female partner is aged between 23 and 39 and has either an identified cause of infertility, such as blocked fallopian tubes, or unexplained infertility of at least three years, should be allowed three cycles of IVF on the NHS. 

Unfortunately the facts don’t bear these guidelines out.  Some Primary Care Trusts (PCT) won’t provide treatment for couples who already have a child and may put further restrictions on smokers or overweight couples for example. 

It’s also unlikely that an NHS PCT will offer more than one cycle.  Obviously having private IVF treatment within the UK is an option, but with cycle costs of between £4,000 to £8,000 more and more couples are looking into getting IVF treatment abroad.

However, it’s not only the costs involved that are driving up the level of IVF treatment abroad.  Regulations in the UK prohibit paying egg donors more than £250 for expenses and loss of earnings, which has led to a shortage of donors and long waiting lists of up to 4 years for treatment.  Obviously the longer you are waiting, the lower your chances are of a successful pregnancy. 

A woman undergoing IVF treatment with fresh eggs at 35 has a 28.1% chance of becoming pregnant as opposed to a woman of 44 undergoing the same procedure who only has a 1.4% chance. 

The top 3 destinations for Brits having IVF treatment abroad are currently Spain, Cyprus and Turkey - although India is moving fast up the rankings.  Average treatment cost for one cycle of IVF treatment in Spain is £2,360, in Cyprus the cost averages at £2,200 and in Turkey the average cost for one cycle of IVF treatment is £1,500.  These costs don’t include airfares and accommodation, but all destinations are on budget airline routes from the UK. 

In a recent survey of 650 British medical tourists, 84.6% of those having IVF treatment abroad were happy with the results.

So what do you need to check if you’re thinking of having IVF treatment abroad?  You need to carry out as much research as possible, speak to your GP about your medical treatment overseas and think about how far you want to travel.  Once you’ve chosen the country where you want your IVF treatment carried out, compare the costs, credentials and services of the clinic you’re favouring.  Also find out how the clinic measures their success rates and ask to speak to previous patients to find out what their experiences were. 

You need to research the medical regulations in the country you’ve chosen for your overseas IVF treatment as it’s important to know what qualifications are required for medical staff, this is so you can check that the clinic or hospital you’ve chosen is only using properly trained and licensed staff.

In general the pros for becoming a medical tourist and having your IVF treatment overseas are faster, cheaper treatment at clinics that may not have an upper age limit.  It’s also possible that tests and treatments not available in the UK may be on offer such as sex selection and there are less strict regulations on the number of embryos implanted.

The draw backs may be that the regulation of fertility treatment abroad isn’t to the same standard as that of the UK.  You also need to check that eggs and sperm are checked for inherited conditions or diseases.  Remember as well that it can be more stressful having IVF treatment overseas if you don’t speak the language.  As a last word, if you’re thinking about it…very good luck, we wish you a successful outcome.