Advantages of IVF egg donation

Last Updated: 14 July, 2026.

Egg donation gives you a chance to conceive if you are unable to produce healthy eggs yourself. It is fast, has a high success rate, and carries the minimum risk of genetic complications.

It is still the best option for women over 40 who have tried IVF and other infertility treatments without success.

Advantages of egg donation – Summary

Egg donation may be recommended when a woman cannot produce healthy eggs, has experienced unsuccessful IVF or other infertility treatments, has inherited conditions, has undergone chemotherapy or radiotherapy, has lost her ovaries, or faces a high risk of passing on a genetic disorder.

Other advantages include experiencing pregnancy, controlling lifestyle factors that affect the baby’s development, breastfeeding, and having a child who is biologically related to the recipient’s partner when his sperm is used.

Donors are checked for certain infectious and genetic diseases and are physically matched with recipient couples as closely as possible.

Advantages of egg donation

Egg donation can be the solution and is recommended if you suffer from any inherited conditions, premature menopause, chemotherapy or radiotherapy for cancer treatment, surgery injuries that result in producing low-quality eggs, or no eggs at all even, or losing your ovaries.

It is also recommended:

• If other treatments like, for example, IVF failed
• If you suffer from an inherited disorder and there is a risk of passing it on
• If you’re in your 40s and have low chances of success with your own eggs which quality decreases with age
• If there are high risks of genetic disorders

Before egg donors are recruited they are also checked for infectious diseases like HIV, hepatitis B and C, and some of the genetic disorders like cystic fibrosis. Donors are recommended to be under 36 years old but they are usually younger.

You might be interested in: Anonymous, Non-anonymous, Open, or Known Egg Donation

Oocyte donation – other advantages of egg donation

These are advantages that are not health-related – however, they still impact the health and emotional well-being of the child and the mother:

• You will experience pregnancy in its entirety, with all its benefits and maternal feelings
• You will be able to control the lifestyle aspects important for the baby’s development like diet, smoking, and drinking. Adoption and surrogacy do not give you this option.
• If the sperm is received from your partner the child is biologically his.
• You can breastfeed which aids the natural bond between the mother and child.

You will also be glad to know that donors are physically matched with the recipient couples as closely as possible. That includes such characteristic attributes as hair colour and eye colour. Matching goes even further to fit the couple as best as possible and that’s why occupation and even interests are also taken into account.

Information about any person born as a result of donation is not given to anybody except the child itself when turning 18 years old. There is an exception however when the son or daughter is 16 years old and is already in a sexual relationship he or she is permitted to find out about the donor’s identity. This is a good solution for people worried about sexual relationships between persons of the same biological lineage.

Recipient couples are legal parents of any child born from the result of the egg donation so you do not have to worry about that legally wise.

Success rates – disadvantage or advantage?

The success rates of IVF procedures with donated eggs are 55% or higher. Those may not look too high but they are higher than standard IVF treatments, that’s because donated eggs are always retrieved from young, healthy women, under 35 years of age.

Who may benefit from IVF with egg donation?

Egg donation may be recommended for women who cannot produce healthy eggs, have inherited conditions, have experienced premature menopause, have undergone chemotherapy or radiotherapy, have lost their ovaries, or have surgery-related injuries that resulted in low-quality eggs or no eggs.

It is also recommended when other treatments such as IVF have failed, when there is a risk of passing on an inherited disorder, when a woman is in her 40s and has a low chance of success with her own eggs, or when there is a high risk of genetic disorders.

How are egg donors screened?

Before recruitment, donors are checked for infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis B and C. They are also checked for some genetic disorders, including cystic fibrosis.

How old are egg donors?

Donors are recommended to be under 36 years old, but they are usually younger.

Can the recipient experience pregnancy and breastfeed?

Yes. The recipient can experience pregnancy in its entirety and can breastfeed, which supports the natural bond between the mother and child.

Is the child biologically related to the recipient’s partner?

If sperm from the recipient’s partner is used, the child is biologically related to him.

How closely are donors matched with recipient couples?

Donors are matched as closely as possible based on characteristics such as hair colour and eye colour. Occupation and interests may also be considered.

Who are the child’s legal parents?

The recipient couple are the legal parents of any child born as a result of egg donation.