It’s common for hopeful parents to use a sperm or an egg donor to complete their embryo. If you need to find a gamete donor for your surrogacy, a surrogacy professional at a surrogacy agency can connect you to a donor bank.
To get more information about how to find an egg donor and a sperm donor, contact a surrogacy professional today to receive guidance.
Continue reading to find out how your surrogacy professional will help you find a sperm donor or an egg donor so you can complete your family.
Who Needs to Find an Egg Donor or Sperm Donor?
There are many reasons that intended parents choose to find a sperm donor or an egg donor to complete their surrogacy. For example, you may be:
- In a heterosexual couple where one or both of you need to use a donor
- In a same-sex couple
- A single, hopeful parent
- In a couple that would rather not pass on possible genetic conditions to their baby
Because using gamete donors is so common in surrogacy, surrogacy professionals are experts at helping intended parents navigate this process.
How Do I Find an Egg Donor?
Intended parents who need to use an egg donor have options. Your surrogacy professional may refer you to one of the following egg donor organizations.
- In-house egg donor programs: Some surrogacy agencies offer in-house egg donation services.
- Fertility clinic: If a surrogacy agency doesn’t have an in-house egg donation program, they can likely provide you with recommended fertility clinics.
- You can find an egg donor online: You can search online for different egg donor programs. Searching online allows you to view egg donor profiles. If you choose this route, talk to your surrogacy professional to ensure you’re working with a donor program that thoroughly screens its surrogates.
- Frozen egg donation: Some intended parents use frozen egg donation programs because their surrogate doesn’t have to sync their cycle to the egg donor’s cycle.
Questions to Ask an Egg Donation Organization
While you’re on the search for finding an egg donor to work with, ask the professionals you’re considering working with a list of questions before committing to work with their agency. Some questions you could consider asking include:
- How do you find egg donors?
- What requirements do donors need to meet with your program? Do you also screen for drugs? Genetic conditions?
- Do you keep up-to-date medical history for every donor? How long do you keep donor medical records?
- Do you provide frozen or fresh egg donations?
- How do I find an egg donor who looks like me?
The following are just a few of the egg donation programs you could choose to find an egg donor through:
How do I Find a Sperm Donor?
All sperm donors provide samples to sperm banks. When a sperm bank receives a sample, they check it for:
- Safety, to ensure it is contagion-free
- Sperm quality
After the sperm is cleared for use, the intended parents can choose the sperm sample they want to use. The sperm bank will then send the sample to the couple’s fertility clinic for IVF.
Questions to Ask a Sperm Bank
Before working with them, you should ask sperm banks questions about their services and requirements. The following are a few questions you could consider asking:
- How do you recruit sperm donors?
- What requirements do donors need to meet with your program? Do you also screen for drugs? Genetic conditions? What’s your HIV screening process?
- What medical and genetic conditions do you test for?
- Is finding a sperm donor who looks like me possible?
These are some of the sperm donor banks you could decide to find a sperm donor through:
- The Sperm Bank of California
- California Cryobank
- Fairfax Cryobank
- NW Cryobank
- Pacific Reproductive Services
Open Donation vs. Anonymous Donation
Many surrogacy professionals suggest that intended parents find an egg donor and sperm donor who shares some of their personal information. The following are some of the benefits of working with open-identified egg donors and sperm donors:
- Having gamete donor information allows you to tell your child about their donor family (if they have half-siblings, who their extended family is, etc.).
- You’ll also have access to a donor’s medical history, which is essential for your child’s health.
Consider Using the Donor Sibling Registry
This registry allows an intended parent to connect their child with biological relatives. This can help them:
- Grow their sense of identity as they grow up
- A chance to get relevant and new information about their biological family’s medical history
Find an Egg Donor or Sperm Donor (or Both) to Grow Your Family
If you’re ready to start your surrogacy journey, a surrogacy professional can help you find a sperm donor or an egg donor to help you create an embryo. Start the conversation today.