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Double screening after six months All donated sperm, eggs and embryos are subjected to extensive medical screening too. Naturally, this includes genetic screening to avoid congenital disorders. Frozen sperm is always stored for at least six months before use. This precaution is taken because some infections, especially HIV, can only be detected during this period. Repeating the screening processes after this period and before the sperm is used allows the CRG to guarantee that the donor sperm is healthy. This double screening (double checking) cannot be applied to eggs, however. Egg donation always requires fresh material because eggs cannot be frozen and stored. All egg donors undergo the same thorough medical and genetic screening processes as those applied to donors of semen or embryos, but the eggs cannot be held in quarantine for several months. This means that no conclusive guarantee of infection-free status can be given for donor eggs. Nevertheless, the CRG’s careful screening and precautions are sufficiently rigorous to reduce the chances of infection to practically zero. WHO ARE THE LEGAL MOTHER AND FATHER DONATION In <strong>Belgium</strong>, the law makes no distinction between couples who conceive naturally and couples who use donor sperm, eggs or embryos. The woman who gives birth to the child is always the legal mother. If the woman is married, her husband is automatically the legal father. If the woman is unmarried, her partner may voluntarily acknowledge the child and thus become the legal father. That is why your embryos, sperm or eggs cannot be used to help other couples without your written consent. You will have to complete and sign a form before any treatment can begin. By doing so, you relinquish your sperm and eggs, they are no longer yours. The woman or couple accepting the donor material as well are required to sign a form confirming that they accept it. 96
SPERM DONATION As mentioned above, supply and demand are more or less in balance with regards to sperm donation, although this is can’t be taken for granted anymore since demand is steadily rising. Anyway, the major advantage of sperm is that it can be produced easily and frequently, then frozen and stored. The most important prerequisite for sperm donors is that they are aged between 18 and 44, and healthy. In order to verify the latter a number of tests are conducted prior to the donation. But apart from that donors do not require any medical treatment. They are merely asked to refrain from ejaculating for a number of days running up to the donation and to travel to the location where they will produce or deliver the sperm sample. For example volunteers are recruited amongst the student population of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), the staff of the Universitair Ziekenhuis (UZ Brussel), among men due to have a vasectomy or men who are to undergo a fertility treatment with their partner and whose sperm has been deemed fit. But of course also other men are welcome! DONATION 97
Page 1 and 2: THE MAIN POINTS All people who rely
Page 3: to allow the ‘harvesting’ of ri
Page 7 and 8: EGG DONATION Egg donation offers th
Page 9 and 10: Finally, and strange as this may se
Page 11 and 12: In case of an uneven number of eggs
Page 13 and 14: contribution can have an amplified
Page 15 and 16: EMBRYO DONATION A couple’s infert

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