Whether it is their career demands, getting married at a later age, a decision to not have a child right now or a medical condition that they want to focus on, assisted reproductive experts in India have reported that there has been a 25 per cent rise in the number of a growing number of city-living, career-oriented women opting to freeze their eggs. This egg freezing process–also known as oocyte cryopreservation–is a fertility preservation option wherein the ovaries are stimulated and eggs are extracted from them. These are then cryopreserved for later use. Eggs can be stored for years and then accessed at any point to be fertilised and implanted.
This process ensures that women can bear a biological offspring when they’re ready. When women are in their 20s, fertility is about 25 per cent each month and when they enter their 30s, it goes down to 15 per cent. By the time they are in their 40s, the chances of them getting pregnant reduce to 5 per cent. So, the best age is to freeze one’s eggs by late 20s or early 30s.
In India, the total procedure costs about two to three lakh rupees and is offered in private healthcare only. This includes which includes multiple ultrasounds, blood tests, stimulation of ovaries, retrieval of eggs and freezing them for about 15 years. Since egg freezing doesn’t fall under any particular law in India, clinics require the consent of patients that their eggs will be kept frozen for a certain number of years. If the patients don’t ask for them back or request an extension for a longer period, clinics have the right to dispose of these eggs.