We were disappointed to read in the press earlier this week that there were concerns about women over 40 being exploited by the IVF industry. London Women's Clinic's Fertility for the Over-40s programme has been running successfully at our LWC London Bridge clinic for over five years and has proved increasingly popular. This is a trend that has been seen across the country, with figures released by the ONS in the last fortnight showing that conception rates in women over 40 are increasing and have more than doubled since 1990. 

As part of our dedicated programme for women hoping to achieve a pregnancy over 40, we offer a number of treatment options including IVF with Preimplantation Genetic Testing for Aneuploidy (PGT-A) and egg donation which, depending on the patient’s age and individual medical history, can be discussed with a fertility specialist to provide the best chance of having a baby. 

We spoke to Professor Nick Macklon, Medical Director of the LWC to understand why fertility declines and to learn more about the treatment options available to women trying for a pregnancy over 40.

Fertility for the Over-40s

Women are increasingly delaying having children, so more frequently they are seeking fertility treatment later in life and in to their forties. Unfortunately, over 40, their chances of conceiving are lower than if they had tried for a baby in their twenties or thirties. Women are born with a fixed number of eggs and eventually this store of eggs runs down as they approach the menopause. As well as a woman’s number of eggs declining as they age, the quality of the eggs also decreases. This leads to an increased amount of chromosomal abnormalities in the eggs which in turn can increase the risk of miscarriage and babies born with genetic conditions (such as Down syndrome). 

“The key aspect for any patient looking to become pregnant over 40 years old is to make sure they are fully informed of their individual chance of success from the treatment options available to them.” says Professor Macklon. “It is important that the patient has a detailed conversation with a fertility specialist to discuss their individual circumstances before starting any treatment.” To understand a woman’s fertility better, a fertility health check may be suggested including hormone tests and a pelvic ultrasound scan to assess the womb and ovaries. However, unfortunately there is no test to assess the quality of eggs and the age of the female patient will determine her likely chance of any treatment working.

Click here to see our services for women looking to achieve a pregnancy over 40 >

IVF with Pre-implantation Genetic Testing for Aneuploidy (PGT-A)

Many IVF cycles fail because the embryos are genetically abnormal (chromosomally unbalanced). An abnormal number of chromosomes (aneuploidy) means that embryos are unable to implant or develop into a healthy pregnancy or live birth. Studies have found that as the age of the female patient increases, the greater the number of chromosome abnormalities in their eggs and resulting embryos.

“PGT-A helps the embryology team to select embryos that have the best chance of implanting.” says Professor Macklon, “It can benefit women over 40 provided that there are enough embryos to choose from.  If there is only one embryo created, then PGT-A can have limited value.” Following IVF, day 5 embryos (blastocysts) are biopsied and the cells sent to a laboratory to be genetically tested.  Any embryos that are found to be “normal” can then be transferred in a later frozen embryo transfer one at a time.

The LWC’s IVF Select programme has seen high success rates (up to 60%) for women over 40 who use PGT-A as a method of embryo selection. However, the number of patients is small, and the success rates are based on patients who have a normal (“euploid”) embryo to transfer. 

For more information about Embryo Testing, click here >

Egg donation

“Increasingly, donor eggs are becoming a more effective way of overcoming age-related infertility.” says Professor Macklon. Technology in the IVF laboratory has improved which means that donor eggs can now be successfully frozen using the fast-freezing method of vitrification and then thawed when patients need them. Donor eggs via our partner clinic London Egg Bank are donated by women who are under 35 which means that the chances of success are high. Frozen donor eggs from a large variety of donors are available via the London Egg Bank’s online catalogue without a wait.

For women looking to become pregnant over 40, and particularly women over 43 who will have limited success with their own eggs, IVF treatment with donor eggs can increase their chance of success up to 50-60%.

Discover how egg donation can help you here >

For more information about the LWC’s Fertility for the Over-40s programme, please come along to one of our regular free open days.  If you are interested in finding out more about your own fertility to understand your individual chance of success, please contact us to arrange to meet a fertility specialist.