Showing posts with label Success stories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Success stories. Show all posts
Perseverance and spirit, secret of all triumphs
July 25, 2017
Josh Billings said,
“life consists not in holding good cards but in playing those you hold well.”
They do not have good cards;
They do have the perseverance and spirit
and overcame the premature ovarian failure and azoospermia eventually.
A quote of Taiwanese Poet, Xi Murong, is that “all in rush written in the book of youth.” Youth is like a blooming flower, at the brightest and most beautiful stage of the life. What is your definition of youth?
I still remembered the first day I met her. She came to our clinic for the health screening before getting married and prepared for the pregnancy. The uterine condition and fallopian tubes seemed normal. Unexpectedly, the chocolate cysts were found in her ovaries, with a declined AMH value as 0.76 mg/ml. The ovarian reserve showed severely declined, and it was unusual at her age (~20+ years).
Chocolate cysts is the symptoms of endometriosis which endometrial tissue grows out of the uterus, and in the ovaries. The cysts contain the menstrual blood, chocolate-like liquid, enlarging over months with the menstruation. Thus she often felt pain during the periods, but did not know the actual reason until now.
It was not the entire news. The results of her fiancé 's semen analysis displayed as azoospermia, which means that no sperm could be found in the ejaculated semen.
With such low AMH value, many people would choose to take the donated egg program. However, using the embryo generated from both donors' sperms and eggs is forbidden according to the reproductive legislation in Taiwan. The diminished ovarian reserve and azoospermia became two difficulties in getting pregnancy. Considering her age was still young, the fertility specialist recommended her to take the strategy of oocyte accumulation from multiple IVF cycles and to use the sperm bank.
She agreed with this suggestion. Instead of a fixed stimulation protocol, her doctor designed an individualized protocol to adjust her ovarian function. In her first IVF cycle, four mature eggs were collected and it encouraged them to continue the other programs.
Then their wedding followed behind.
In the wedding vows, they promised each other,
"I will love you, hold you and honor you,
I will respect you, encourage you and cherish you,
In health and sickness,
Through sorrow and success,
For all the days of my life."
After becoming the husband and wife, they came to the clinic every month to continue the oocyte collection. It was just like running a marathon, and some accidents happened. Eventually, the egg collection took her almost 22 months.
The embryologists performed the artificial insemination using IMSI (6000x magnification) in her precious, frozen-thawed oocytes. The culture condition was controlled very well to grow the fertilized eggs into the blastocysts.
After transferring a blastocyst graded as 4BB, she finally got pregnant, and the beta-HCG level was 500 mIU/mL.
Youth is like a blooming flower, at the brightest and most beautiful stage of the life. Although the ovarian reserve was diminished, the quality seemed not being affected by the maternal age adversely yet. With her whole perseverance and spirit, they finally start a sweet family.
Her clinical outcomes were showed as below,
A turning point in my life — single embryo transfer in donor cycle
June 26, 2017
I have been to so many hospitals for taking IVF.
This time, I made up my mind to come here,
because I have heard that the oocyte bank at Stork Fertility Center was good.
I am 44 years now, and have no time to waste.
It's time to know the result of pregnancy test.
I did not want to do the urine test at home this time, because I was very familiar with the feelings of frustration and disappointment. My husband and I sat in front of the doctor's desk, waiting for the good or bad news.
"Congrats, the beta-HCG is 2000 mIU/mL. You got pregnant!"
My doctor smiled at me, but I was stunned then. Until we walked out of the center, I was just bursting with joy. We have waited for this baby at least 12 years. I even could not remember what I have experienced in the past years. Finally, I got my baby at 44 years of age after transfer only one single embryo. It was the miracle of the eggs, since these eggs were retrieved from a young woman.
Before taking the donated program, I have gone through so many cycles of my own IVF, but it just did not work. In the March of 2016, I have gone through cryotransfer with four Day3 embryos, and the outcome was as disappointed as usual. I asked my husband,
"How can I do? I have no time nor money. Should we continue to try more (IVF)?"
The journey seemed endless, and full of tears.
"How can I do? I have no time nor money. Should we continue to try more (IVF)?"
The journey seemed endless, and full of tears.
After resting couple of days, I decided to use "others' egg," since mine were obviously not good. I found the iCryobank website through net searching, and called to the center directly.
The lady there sounds patient and professional, and we arranged my schedule smoothly. My doctor examined my uterine state after the first visit to the museum-like center, and encouraged us to take the donated program.
Soon, a young donor was matched to us. Thirteen eggs were retrieved, and five available blastocysts were cryopreserved. The process took around three months.
The doctor suggested us transferring a single blastocyst, because both the morphology and developing time of embryos seemed good. I was wondered about the success rate, but finally agreed with the prevention of multiple pregnancies.
This Day5 blastocyst has become our lovely baby now. My family has started here. I was still proud of myself, for the decision at that day and for my own encouragement during this journey.
The best is yet to come
April 24, 2017
She was always gentle to the medical team.
Behind the smiling face,
We all knew the disappointments and frustration.
In the past six months,
No embryos were available for transfer.
She was a 45-year-old woman from Taiwan countryside, undergoing IUI five times and IVF twice. Still, no good news released. When she came to our clinic at the first time, she was arranged to take the oocyte-retrieval after two days for the observed dominant follicle. Unluckily, it was an immature oocyte. Since then, the fertility specialist recommended the natural-cycle IVF to her because of the declined ovarian function. No additional stimulation injections or oral alternatives were administrated, and supremon nasal solution was used as the trigger. From February to July in 2015, she visited the clinic almost every week, but no available embryo was collected.
She was always gentle to the medical team. Behind the smiling face, we all knew the disappointments and frustration. She told the doctor that she probably could not realize her dream. The fertility specialist encouraged her that there is not an only way to be a mother, and suggested her thinking about oocyte donation program.
Owing to the bountiful supply of oocyte bank at Stork Fertility Center, the matching process only took two months. In September of 2015, nine available blastocysts were derived and cryopreserved. Following with hysterosalpingography, hysteroscopy, and cervical bacteria culture, the doctor checked her uterine environment through several examinations. After the first cryotransfer, the beta-HCG showed negative. Her doctor ordered an auto-immune testing, and transferred her to the related specialists for further immune treatment.
In March of 2016, she took the second cryotransfer. The result was still upset. Why? Why? Why? She continuously asked the doctor and herself. Her specialist asked several questions about her life style after embryo transfer:
Her family owned a small business in Yilan. She needed to help and stand for a long time for the daily works. Although the doctor concerned the derived pressure to uterus, she refused to take a rest after transfer. The medical team did not give up and continue to convince her. Finally, she decided to grasp the chance.
The third cryotransfer was in July of 2016 after she arranged the backups for her family business. The fertility and immune specialists adjusted the post-transfer medications for her. She took two weeks for resting after the transfer and stayed at Hsinchu until the pregnancy test released. The beta-HCG showed positive this time, and the fetal heartbeat was detected after another three weeks later.
She was very happy and careful, coming back for the prenatal checks and related immune exams. In the 14 weeks of gestation, the non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) showed normal. Now, she was waiting for her healthy newborn.
Follow your dreams, they know ways.
March 17, 2017
Using the donated eggs or struggling with my declined ovaries made me confused on this journey.
I slowed down, and heard the voice in my heart,
"What do you really want in the very beginning?"
"Having a child, my Lord."
"Just follow your dreams, they know the way."
In the summer of 2015, I got an email overseas.
This mail was from Hong Kong, and also the first connection between she and me. She was my first "pen-pal" at the Stork Fertility Center, but not the first overseas friend here.
Our dean always said that there were four stations during the journey of having babies. Each person gets on the different trains in different times, at different places. The speed, the duration, and the starting/ending time are different as well. Ideally, this journey would be better at the age under 35 years. The second one was at the age between 35 and 37 years. Then it was at the age between 38 and 40 years. The last train was at the age over 40 years. On the last train, the cost was high and the duration was pretty long, but the terminal became uncertain.
When I received her mail, she was on the last train:
[I have undergone the IVF several times, and the harvested oocytes were very few. In the last one program, I only retrieved one oocyte while the ultrasound monitor showed that there could be four follicles. The only one had poor morphology and possible poor quality. My fertility specialist recommended me to take the donation program, since the ovarian function seemed significantly declined. I was very disappointed and confused. My mother expected grand children so much, and she was quite old. I don't know how I can do now.
I sat in front of the laptop, and googled for the donated eggs. I tried to slow down my thoughts, and heard a voice from heart,
"What do you really want in the very beginning?"
"Having a child, my Lord."
"Just follow your dreams, they know the way."
One night, I discussed the donation program with my husband, and achieved a consensus. We decided to visit your fertility center for the donation program.]
She mentioned the limited ability of Mandarin, and would like to prepare all the required documents before coming to Taiwan. I replied her questions step by step, and arranged the related body exams. Thanks to the developed SOP for overseas customers at Stork Fertility Center, she completed all the prerequisite preparation soon.
She chose the fresh donated-egg set, which the donor undergoes the stimulation and retrieval operation, and then the eggs are fertilized immediately rather than being cryopreserved. When I reported the outcomes of oocyte pick-up, she said, "how about the recovery? Is the process bad to her body?" She knew that the process could be very uncomfortable to some females, since she already underwent the IVF so many times.
Fortunately, everything went well. There were 16 available eggs, and 9 good blastocysts cryopreserved. In the following year, she underwent the first cryotransfer with a Day 5 embryo graded 4AB. Not too surprisingly, I received her good news from Hong Kong, and the precious video of fetal heartbeat. We both saw the primary photos of the baby in front of the computers.
This year, the healthy baby was delivered, and the mother recovered very well. She has promised us to bring the baby back for celebration.
2017, is a brand new beginning for her family.
A home-run and an additional Y chromosome
October 20, 2016
The result of pregnancy test made her extraordinarily happy — 100% positive.
However, the following amniocentesis report turned her down immediately...
A real story was shared by the doctor of Stork Fertility Center.
She made an appointment for saying good-bye to me. The entire IVF progress was filled difficulties. And just like another temptation to her, God gave an additional Y chromosome to the transferred embryo. Although the risk existed, she decided to continue the gestation. She said,
"I prayed for a Y chromosome, but He gave me two. "
When she first visited us, she had two daughters already, but she still wanted to have a boy in her family. However, the expected third baby delayed to join their family, and finally she made an appointment with the fertility specialist. The hormone test showed that her ovaries was declining (FSH=24.6mIU/mL). She could not accept this diagnosis initially until underwent two consecutive failure in the IUI and IVF treatments. In that IVF cycle, only three mature oocytes were retrieved.
That's why she came to us and requested an IVF treatment. I refused her because she had two daughters already according to the record. After she told me the condition, I was hesitated. (To have boys and girls is a dream of most people.)
That's why she came to us and requested an IVF treatment. I refused her because she had two daughters already according to the record. After she told me the condition, I was hesitated. (To have boys and girls is a dream of most people.)
I started her stimulation in the September. The response in left ovary was poor, and only five mature oocytes were retrieved from the right ovary. Two of the four oocytes were normally fertilized (fertilization rate = 50%). While the embryologist reported the outcome of culturing, the unexpectedly lower fertilization rate turned her down. The development of embryos were not good either, so she decided to transfer a day 4 morula.
The result was disappointed. After two months for resting, she entered the IVF cycle again. Seven oocytes were harvested this time, but only one were normally fertilized. On day 5, only one early blastocyst was available to be transferred. Only one usable embryo twice made her quite frustrated. She had no confidence to the result. I encouraged her with all my efforts, and reminded her that the only embryo could be the best one.
On the day of pregnancy test, she was totally delighted by the clear "positive" result. A home-run was made by the only embryo. She kept this good mood until the amniocentesis report was released. She phoned me that the baby has mosaic 47,XXY/46,XY (mosaic Klinefelter syndorme). I tried my best to comfort her and made a referral to the related specialist.
Today, she came to my suite with her two girls. I already knew her decision from the smile face. In the end of this summer vacation, her family will welcome a baby boy.
Many people did not know that they have the premature ovarian failure unless they came to the fertility specialists. Most cases faced this problem with pessimism or passive attitudes. Some people just convinced themselves that everything was fine, and some pretended that they would not like to have kids. Fortunately, this case choose to solve the problem positively with an optimistic attitude. Perhaps she was already a mother of two daughters, she clearly knew what she need. And the last thing was how to meet the need.
It was a happy ending. As a sentence from Count of Monte Cristo, "all human wisdom is summed up in two words: wait and hope."
It was a happy ending. As a sentence from Count of Monte Cristo, "all human wisdom is summed up in two words: wait and hope."
To all the friends who suffered the same problem, I just want to say,
"Yes, you can."
"Yes, you can."
The last four tubes of frozen sperms
October 11, 2016
How to grasp the last chance?
In a frustrated manner or an optimistic manner?
A real story was shared by the doctor of Stork Fertility Center.
"For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted..." ~ Ecclesiastes 3, Bible.
As the King Solomon said, there is a beginning and an ending in everything, including the human body. However, most of us are not ready to face the end.
I met this couple at the clinic suite in a beautiful day.
The couple have been married for seven years. The husband was diagnosed as congenital bilateral absent of the vas deference, CBAVD. He has undergone MESA and TESE twice. In CBAVD cases, testes are able to produce motile sperms, but have no vas deference to transfer these sperms. Finally, the produced sperms would be metabolized and then reabsorbed by the surrounding tissue. Thus, the CBAVD cases can collected the available sperms through operation for IVF purpose.
The IVF program was not that difficult for the wife. She has undergone the program twice before, and was familiar with the stimulation injection and retrieval operation. As a 40-year-old woman, collecting 18 oocytes in a single cycle was a very good result. However, the result of TESE was not that good—few motile sperm were found. Moreover, the urologist told the husband that his testes could not tolerate the TESE operation anymore due to testicular fibrosis. The frozen sperms which have been collected before were their last chance.
Although the amount of oocytes was enough, the quality of sperms was not good enough. Eight embryos were formed after fertilization (all IMSI), and six blastocysts were cryopreserved. After two failed FBT cycles, they only had two frozen embryos and four tubes of frozen sperms. To increase the success rate of IVF, this couple decided to do IVF program again and create more available embryos.
Thirteen oocytes were harvested in the following cycle, and six embryos formed, and four blastocysts were stored. After another failed FBT, I transferred the last three embryos for them.
Fortunately, one of these three embryos was implanted. The amniocentesis report showed that they had a healthy baby girl.
I remembered that the first time I met them at the clinic suite. Both of them had warm smile and optimistic manner to the future program no matter how hard they have tried to have baby.
I knew they would reach a happy ending in this journey. And they really did eventually.
